Representation by Mr Richard Deane Langworthy
- Date submitted
- 4 October 2018
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Hi there
I have been involved in the campaign to save Manston Airport since it began in Spring 2014. We were conned by the tycoon who bought it, who originally promised to run the airport for 2 years after she bought it shortly before the end of 2013, yet decided to instead close it just 4 months into her ownership of it, with the intention of replacing it with houses. Since then, me and other locals have been up in arms over this and have been campaigning to get the airport reopened. At first we demanded our local council allow RiverOak to acquire the airport via a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) but the then-Labour ran council didn't allow it. Come the local elections in 2015, we voted in [Redacted] of UKIP who went all in with a promise to reopen the airport but by the end of the year he broke that promise and is instead wanting the airport replaced by houses. RiverOak, the company trying to acquire the airport, decided to go about acquiring it via a Development Consent Order (DCO). They have had a lot of hoops to jump through but they seem to be getting somewhere and it means a lot to me that they have.
I think a reopened Manston Airport would help Thanet a lot. The airport acting as a cargo hub would make shipments of goods easier to bring to the area and would mean fewer HGVs on our roads. Also, with the possibility of passenger flights, it would help maintain Thanet's reputation as a tourist destination. I also feel that the airport would help create a lot of long term jobs, as opposed to the short term jobs a housing estate would bring. I feel that a housing estate would result in our roads getting more jam packed, as construction would take a long time. An airport, however, would result in fewer vehicles on our roads and serve the area very well! There is also a lot of money to be made in air cargo, something our country lost nearly £10 billion in back in 2015, not helped by Manston Airport not having been in use!
In response to these complaints of airplane noise and night flights:
- modern aircraft is less noisy than older aircraft.
- the airport will only be open from 7am-11pm.
- if there are ANY flights to/from the airport outside these hours, they will most likely be emergency landings, which aren't common, but do happen.
I feel we really do need Manston Airport reopened and the DCO should be approved.
Thank you for your time
Mr Richard Deane Langworthy