Birmingham Airport (BHX) officially marked the start of its runway extension development November 28th. The project will see the existing runway length increase 405 metres (1,328 ft.) to 3,003 metres (9,850 ft.), giving aircraft unlimited range from the Midlands. Aircraft will be able to take off from Birmingham with more fuel and fly direct to destinations currently out of reach, such as China, South America, South Africa and the West Coast of the US. The development, opening in early 2014, will generate spare long-haul capacity in the region and help to take cars off the road, saving thousands of unnecessary surface journeys each year.
“The strong economic profile of the Midlands means that businesses are crying out for direct connectivity from their local airport, so it makes no sense that 3.3 million passengers from the West Midlands last year flew from airports in the South East, adding congestion on the roads and at Heathrow, which is already 99.2-percent full,” explained Paul Kehoe, Birmingham Airport’s CEO.
Left to right; Paul Kehoe, Birmingham Airport CEO, Lee Rushbrooke, Chief Executive – Colas, Des Steadman, MD Civil Engineering – VolkerFitzpatrick, Will Heynes, Development Director – Birmingham Airport and Chris Sedman, Project Director – VolkerFitzpatrick Colas.
“Redirecting this traffic back to the Midlands would release high value, long-haul capacity at London airports and boost the UK’s trading potential,” he added. “We have plenty of spare capacity at Birmingham now. Our passenger numbers could double from the current 9 million a year to 18 million today, and the runway extension will allow us to increase beyond 36 million in future years.”
Kehoe says passenger growth could create in excess of 243,000 jobs in the region, according to a new report by the West Midlands Economic Forum. “Making greater use of the spare capacity at airports across the country will help generate sustainable long-term economic growth and help to rebalance the UK economy.”
With the runway extension opening up so many new long-haul route opportunities from Birmingham, the Airport is actively talking to existing and new airlines to explore new markets and routes from the Midlands. A new team of route development experts and a trade sales team have been employed by the company to ensure that the Airport is represented globally at key trade events and meetings, and it is working with local brands such as MG Motors and JLR to help develop relationships with key overseas markets.
The Company has also been lobbying the UK government to assign ‘National Airport’ status to key gateways to UK markets. For instance, Birmingham, as a National Airport, would be recognized as the gateway at the heart of UK manufacturing. Such an endorsement would help the Airport to encourage new routes, by demonstrating the government’s commitment to the whole of the UK’s long-term aviation strategy.
On behalf of government, an independent commission has been tasked with reviewing all options for future UK airport capacity. The utilization of spare capacity which is available immediately at regional airports such as Birmingham, is regarded by many not only as a pragmatic solution, but as a way of encouraging greater growth and resilience in the UK economy.
The runway extension will be wholly funded by the Airport Company at a cost of £33 million (US$52 million). In addition, the Airport is making a further investment of £13 million ($20 million) for the construction of a new air traffic control tower and radar system, which will be operational in early 2013, plus £9 million ($14 million) on resurfacing the entire runway.
Maintenance Provider Breaks Ground at BHX
Monarch Aircraft Engineering (MAEL), an award-winning independent aircraft maintenance provider, announced in mid-January that construction work has started on its 110,000-sq.-ft. (10,220-sq.-m.), state-of-the-art maintenance facility, at Birmingham Airport. Announced in November 2012, the new facility will create 150 new jobs with the potential for a further 150.
The construction work, which is due to be completed and fully operational by the end of 2013, commenced with Mick Adams, MAEL Managing Director, breaking soil at Birmingham Airport on 11 January 2013. “This is a key milestone in MAEL’s development which will allow us to meet the requirements of our customers and to fulfill the potential to grow our third-party customer base even more rapidly,” he explained.
Paul Kehoe, CEO of Birmingham Airport said: “This state-of-the-art facility in the West Midlands demonstrates Monarch’s long-term commitment to the region, creating job opportunities for skilled engineers and young people looking to start a career in aircraft maintenance. We look forward to watching the development take shape over the coming months.”
The new facility will incorporate industry-leading design, technology and build standards and will have the capacity to accommodate both wide body and narrow body aircraft. Supported by a number of component-repair and back shops as well as a logistics centre, the Birmingham facility will complement MAEL’s existing heavy maintenance operations in the UK at London Luton and Manchester Airports.
Look for more on Birmingham Airport as a driver of economic activity in Site Selection magazine’s March 2013 Airport Cities report.