Gazboy Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 It's bad enough just getting another terminal and a runway on an existing airport, but building an international airport of high capacity from scratch up north? Where would you put it? Where ever it goes it'll either need 10,000 homes demolishing or an area of outstanding natural beauty concreted over. It's got to have good motorway and rail links or you have to build those from scratch too, and you've got to supply electricity to the place - in a nutshell you would have to build a large town from the underground up. Good luck with that. The Greenies and Nimby's have no alternative suggestions and no constructive comments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael Posted January 16, 2009 Author Share Posted January 16, 2009 Why from scratch? We do have airports up here you know, they have proper runways too, the cobbles have been replaced. Unfortunately Leeds Bradford airport is close to a lot of nice villages, villages that are likely to house the kinds of people who have the power to decline requests to expand. The Government is unlikely to get involved up here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ark Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 I am forced to wonder if the current government will discard the idea of bulldozing large areas of the north for fear of alienating large chunks of core supporters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonB Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 P.S. Very sound points you make there sir, do you work in the transport industry? Yep, I work for NATS (National Air Traffic Services) who basically provide all the en-route air traffic control in the UK (and half of the Atlantic). That means all aircraft flying in controlled airspace, so pretty much all aircraft thatt take off, land or overfly the UK. There are actually a large number of overflights going to/from Europe and the US. We also control Heathrow, Gatwick and quite a few other airports. NATS have to ensure that aircraft can safely and quickly get where they want to go while using the least amount of fuel, least environmental impact, least noise etc etc. We have to design the airspace with that in mind, plus the military etc. Airspace is a bit like the road network, there are airways and routes laid down. Unlike a road though you must always maintain a certain separation, and you can't stop an aircraft while the one in front moves out the way! As I said, it's just not practical to have a major airport in some places. It would be a bit like building a massive new Ikea in a tiny village with a small access road to a motorway. Only imagine that every car has to be told exactly what to do and where to go at what speed from the moment it leaves until it arrives in another country. It would cause massive congestion. Airspace design is very complicated, things like local transport links are childs play compared with trying to design airspace to get 2.5 million flights per year through without ever being able to compromise safety. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dibbleyuk Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 I put yes. I also think the stansted expansion should go ahead its 30mins from my house so idea for my summer holidays sorry to all the people that have to drive 5hours to get to a larger airport but i dont care Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiceRocket Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 Unless I'm (the taxpayer) paying for it then I aint bothered. Getting ready for 2012 needs things like this. Construction of the new runway if going ahead doesn't start till 2015. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merckx Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 I much prefer the green fields to a massive tarmac and concrete area, but I don't think there's any alternative at the moment to building another runway somewhere in the London area. It's pointless building a large airport in another part of the country at the moment if there's going to be very little need for it in the near future. London is obviously the centre of business and commerce but unfortunately encouraging it to move to other parts of the country would be a very slow and difficult process as there aren't any advantages at all for most companies to move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merckx Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 The Conservatives are already saying they won't build it if they get into power... It's no surprise at all that they disagree with the governent, they take the opposite view with almost everything else which is typical of an opposition party. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ewen Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 I voted no, but actually don't really care. I would if it was on my doorstep, but it isn't. Big up to the chaps and chappesses who bought a field in the middle of the proposed site of the third runway though. A canny investment in these difficult times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl_S Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 Simon eloquently puts down a case that cannot sensibly be refuted, I feel. Rice Rocket, I stand corrected. 2012 Olympics will not benefit at all from the proposed new Heathrow runway. That's amusing Ewen. I wonder if they could legally object to selling - bit like that scottish farmer and the Golfing Paradise that that rich Yank wanted to make, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrRalphMan Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 I wonder if the protesters will end up being branded terrorists to make it easier to move them? That'll make it easy for them. 'They're coming right for us' is then legal.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazboy Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 Why from scratch? We do have airports up here you know, they have proper runways too, the cobbles have been replaced. Unfortunately Leeds Bradford airport is close to a lot of nice villages, villages that are likely to house the kinds of people who have the power to decline requests to expand. The Government is unlikely to get involved up here. Leeds currently handles 2.5 million passengers a year, Heathrow handles 68 million - it's hardly a comparable project to get Leeds upto 100 million passengers, it'd be easier to start again, where on earth would LBI expand to? Heathrow is already gigantic by comparison, look at the size of them on google earth to compare. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 To offer an alternative view-point to Carl, I think London sucks - it's dirty, smelly, overcrowded, expensive, polluted, and so 'up itself' about how great it thinks it is, it doesn't realise what a slum it really is. I'll be happy if I never have to go back there. Cant argue with that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael Posted January 17, 2009 Author Share Posted January 17, 2009 Leeds currently handles 2.5 million passengers a year, Heathrow handles 68 million - it's hardly a comparable project to get Leeds upto 100 million passengers, it'd be easier to start again, where on earth would LBI expand to? Heathrow is already gigantic by comparison, look at the size of them on google earth to compare. I'm not suggesting Leeds should become the new UK major airport, just that there is scope for modernisation and expansion, especially when it comes to transport links. Do this with other regional airports and spread the 100 million people around a bit. When you were looking at LBA on google earth did you see all those fields for miles around it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazboy Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 I'm not suggesting Leeds should become the new UK major airport, just that there is scope for modernisation and expansion, especially when it comes to transport links. Do this with other regional airports and spread the 100 million people around a bit. When you were looking at LBA on google earth did you see all those fields for miles around it? Yes but there isn't enough of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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