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  Thursday, March 20, 2008
Blackpool Airport

Update July 2007

In the light of the decision not to site the proposed Super Casino in Blackpool, serious questions must now be being asked about existing development plans for Blackpool airport.

Further questions must arise from the recent cancellation of a number of high profile routes from Blackpool by a variety of low cost carriers.

In June budget airline Ryanair axed its twice daily service to London leaving Blackpool without a service to the capital. A month previously Jet2 announced it was withdrawing its Prague and Amsterdam services from Blackpool. In July 2007 start-up airline Jetstream  Express axed its routes from Blackpool to Aberdeen, Southampton  and Belfast.

This long stream of disappointments, coupled with the recent high profile failures of Masterplan bids by other regional airports in the face of concerted opposition from local groups and environmental campaigners must lead us to look very carefully at the basis on which Blackpool Airport’s future projections have been made. Defend Lytham believes that any development that might impact the local area must only be allowed if it is sustainable and can be commercially justified in a clear and logical way.

The Lytham St Annes Express of June 8th 2006 carried an article detailing the proposed expansion of Blackpool Airport. The expansion is described as being likely to bring a variety of benefits to the Fylde.  To quote the agenda for the meeting of Fylde Borough Council’s Planning Policy Scrutiny Committee (2006-06-08), “the airport is considered to be of strategic importance to the regeneration of Blackpool and the planned resort casino. The airport’s development is also assessed as being of sub-regional significance in the context of Lancashire’s economic development.”

The article detailed a proposed increase in passenger volumes of 1200%, from the existing 350,000 to 4.5 million by 2030, and suggests that the proposed expansion may need to be at the expense of the green belt land in between Blackpool and Lytham St Annes. Although any such use could not go ahead until the proposed review of green belt land in 2011, it appears that Fylde Borough Council has already explicitly given their support to the expansion. Phil Woodward. Chief Executive of FBC is quoted as saying “In general terms we would welcome this. There is quite a lot of information before us. It is now out for consultation”.

There can be no doubt, however,  that the proposed development was heavily reliant on the new Super Casino being sited in Blackpool. This is even made explicit in the airport’s own Masterplan where it is stated :

“The potential for casino development in Blackpool has been a factor in the forecasts of passenger numbers up to 2030. “

and that:

“The casino proposals for Blackpool will also have significant economic benefits for the Fylde peninsular and the region. The airport is a key strategic transport gateway to serve any new casinos. The economic growth of the area by means of the ReBlackpool Master Plan, for the regeneration of Blackpool, has therefore a strong synergy with the growth of the airport. It is clear that ensuring the success of both a larger airport and a regenerated Blackpool on the back of large scale casino development are essential for both elements to succeed in their plans.

Leaving aside the question of whether the Fylde is a “peninsular” (sic) or not (and it isn’t!), the authors of the master plan are very clear about the fundamental link between the airport development and the now failed casino bid. It is clear that any previously advanced arguments for the sustainability of any airport growth will need, at the very least, to be revisited.

Defend Lytham are fully supportive of any sustainable and ecologically sound development, which will increase prosperity in the town and the region as a whole. However, we feel that there are several questions that need to be addressed if the local population are to be able to make an informed judgement regarding the desirability of any such expansion.

With regard to the proposed benefits we believe more information needs to made public on

  • the basis for the predictions of economic benefit.
  • the methodology used to extrapolate growth in passenger numbers.
  • how these projections must change without the proposed casino

We would also like to know

  • Whether there are alternatives to encroaching on existing green belt land.
  • What the increase in passenger numbers means in terms of an increase in the number of flight and the size of aircraft over-flying Lytham
  • What is the expected increase in noise pollution and what measures will be put in place to mitigate this.
  • what will be the environmental impact - when even George Bush admits in his 2007 State of the Union address that climate change is a serious challenge and tell us that we must be “better stewards of the environment” then we know that this can’t be ignored any longer! Friend of the Earth tell us that “Aviation is already the fastest growing source of carbon dioxide in the UK. ” Defend Lytham is concerned that the potential local and global  environmental impact of the proposed expansion has not yet received sufficient attention.

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If you have an views or further information regarding the proposed development please let us know.

 

 

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