AN abandoned airport in the UK has revealed the newest plans amid years of talks of reopening.
Manston Airport, in Kent, once offered flights from the UK to Europe, including Italy, Portugal and Amsterdam.
However, these ceased in 2014 when KLM pulled out of the airport.
Since then, there have been plans to restart passenger flights to Europe once again.
In a recent interview, Tony Freudmann – the public face of the site’s owners, RiverOak Strategic Partners – explained how this might be longer than we think.
He told Kent Online: “We need, by the time we open, to have enough advance commitment from cargo operators to see that it is going to work.
“At that point, if we get the right approach from passenger carriers, wanting us to build a passenger terminal and base some aircraft here, we’ll go with that.”
The current plans to reopen as a cargo airport are scheduled for 2029.
While no airlines have expressed interest, Mr Freudmann said airlines like Jet2 and TUI prefer “regional airports like this one”.
Not only that, but he addressed the issue of “low cost carriers struggling for peak time slots” at other major airports.
And with the boom in package holidays once again, he said a new passenger terminal could be put forward.
The current passenger terminal would, however, need to be knocked down and replaced.
Local Conservative MP Sir Roger Gale said it “will happen” but added it was unlikely to be until five years after reopening the airport.
This means we can’t expect commercial flights until 2034, at the earliest.
Until then, the airport is still on track to reopen initially for cargo flights.
After a four-year legal battle, it was in May 2024 that it was given the go-ahead, with plans for a £650million overhaul.
However, this has since jumped by £100million to £750million, with plans to start works early this year also delayed.
Mr Freudmann explained: “The first construction work of parking stands, taxiways and new buildings will be at the end of those 18 months.
“So if we start, if we say towards the end of next year, 2027, we’d have a view to opening in 2029.”
Here’s another UK airport that has been left abandoned – but wants to reopen.
And here’s everything to know about the reopening of Doncaster Sheffield Airport which closed in 2022.