Representation by Derek Peter Davenport
- Date submitted
- 15 September 2018
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Manston had been an operational airport or military base for over 100 years prior to its closure in 2014.The plan by RSP to re-open the airport as a freight hub,aircraft recycling centre and passenger terminal make perfect sense to alleviate the congestion at the main London terminals. Manston already has one of the longest runways in Europe able to accommodate the largest aircraft ,the road links to London and beyond are excellent and it must not be forgotten that Manston could be brought back to operational status a lot quicker than extra runway capacity can be provided at London Heathrow.In addition it will provide an ideal distress and diversion airfield (the Dreamliner incident at Heathrow a few years ago is testament to that) that could provide aircraft in difficulties with an accessible and safe landing platform away from major cities.Another major benefit to the region would be the provision of good quality engineering jobs which is something that a housing development would not do and indeed would cause the Thanet to collapse under the strain.Manston should be an airport again,I support RSP in their endeavors.