NEWS\\\


Manston airport in South-east England is set to close, just months aſter being acquired by the Gloag Foundation from its previous owner, Infratil, for £1 last October. The Gloag Foundation, owned


by Ann Gloag, founder of trains and buses operator Stagecoach, said that it had been losing £10,000 a day on the operation since acquiring it from the New Zealand infrastructure company. Business turnaround expert Alastair Welch was put in charge the airport, and unveiled a plan to boost cargo traffic to 400,000 tonnes a year, but to no avail. On 25 March, local MP Roger


Gale said he believed he had found a reputable but unnamed purchaser for Manston, but on 2 April, the “mystery buyer” was reported as having withdrawn from the bidding. The following day,


the airport workforce


presented short- and long-term business plans to management to allow the airport to continue operating. The 144 employees affected


were originally told on 19 March that a statutory 45-day consultation period would begin from that date. However, on 10 April, the Unite union secured an extension to the 45-day consultation period – originally


set to end on 11 May - until a final decision on the future of the airport is made. Further meetings between the management and union were scheduled for 16 and 24 April. Unite regional officer Ian


McCoulough told FBJ that a number of options were being discussed, including retaining and expanding the existing cargo business. “I do know that a number of cargo handling companies have said that they would be interested, but that does require a firm buyer for the airport to come forward.” Other options include turning


Manston into a ‘Centre of Excellence’ with Government or Civil Aviation Authority funding – which could include a cargo element - or expanding the aircraſt recycling business. McCoulough had also


suggested putting the airport into municipal ownership – similar to Prestwick, the other Infratil-owned airport which was sold to the local authority at the same time as Manston – but had received “no positive answers”.. Local MP Roger Gale told FBJ


that the situation “is both delicate and confidential and other than to say that I remain hopeful, I am not in a position to comment.” Manston’s passenger business is


Qatar Airways


adds freighters and flies to Edinburgh


Qatar Airways Cargo is to start freighter services London Stansted from 2 May. The Essex gateway will be served by five weekly Boeing 777F services from Doha. The carrier has also


released details of a new passenger route from Edinburgh to Doha, due to be launched on 28 May. It will operate on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, departing Doha at 08:00 and arriving Edinburgh at 13:15. The return flight departs Edinburgh at 14:45, arriving back in Doha at 23:40. Connections will also be available at Doha to and from other destinations on Qatar’s network including Asia, India


Emirates operated a one-off A380 service at Glasgow Airport to mark its ten-year anniversary and continued commitment to Scotland on 10 April. It is the first time a Scottish airport has ever welcomed an A380, the world’s largest commercial aircraſt. Emirates normally flies 777s on its Dubai-Glasgow route.


and Australasia. The route


will be operated by the world’s newest aircraft, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The Qatar Airways flight will


be one of the few long haul destinations available from the Scottish capital.


at a low ebb. KLM cancelled its two scheduled flights a day to Schiphol on 10 April, saying that it had no current plans to return to Manston, even if the airport’s future was secured. The airport with its long runway


is an invaluable base for freighter operators, squeezed out of busier airports in the London area. However, it is understood that


Issue 3 2014 - Freight Business Journal


3 Manston airport in last-ditch battle for survival


one factor in the decision to close Manston was major customer Saudi Airlines Cargo’s decision to switch to a seasonal operation and cancel its summer flights. Saudi had been operating two 747 freighters a week into Manston from East Africa. The total of 12 scheduled freighters per week operating through the airport also included services by Cargolux,


Magma Aviation and Allied Aviation. British Airways’ decision to


replace its chartered freighters, which occasionally used Manston, with shared capacity on Qatar Airways is also believed to have seriously blunted growth prospects. And a final nail in the coffin was the falling through of talks with low-cost airline Ryanair.


Local press reports suggested


that the site could be turned over to housing. Leader of Thanet District


Council, Clive Hart described the news as “potentially a devastating blow to the local economy,” adding that the council had supported the development of the airport. “This is very disappointing news,” he said.


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