In a nutshell: Manston

Manston a.k.a. Kent International Airport is an ex-RAF base in north-east Kent, just west of Ramsgate. It passed from the RAF to Wiggins, then PlaneStation, owners of EUJet (a budget passenger airline). EUJet went bust, and in August 2005 the administrators sold Manston to Infratil, a New Zealand-based multi-national infrastructure investor.

The airport is mainly used for flying clubs, testing and training, and private planes. In 2008, less than 3% of the planes were freight or passenger flights. Infratil's growth plans for Manston are ambitious: 6 million passengers, ½ million tonnes of freight and 103,800 flights annually.

There is a "Section 106 Agreement" (S106) between Infratil and Thanet District Council (TDC) which describes what Infratil can, and can't, do at Manston. The scale of Infratil's planned growth is enough to require the S106 to be renegotiated. The existing S106 was drawn up in 2005, and needs to be renegotiated anyway as its 3 year lifespan has expired. There would be a statutory period of public consultation lasting 6 months. This consultation period has not started (as at: 20th June 2009).

Due to the nature of airports and air travel, many more people have a stake in this than just Infratil and TDC. East Kent residents under the flightpaths, particularly in Ramsgate, but also in the Wantsum villages, Herne Bay, Whitstable and Canterbury will all be affected to some degree. Environmental groups, transport lobbies, government bodies, wildlife groups and others all have an interest. The non-partisan KIA Consultative Committee provides a valuable forum for all the interested parties to meet and discuss.

A key issue for local residents is noise. Obviously, the nearer a plane is (in both distance and height) the louder the noise; and if everything else is particularly quiet (at night) it will sound louder anyway. Which is why flightpaths, plane heights, flight times and monitoring matter so much to so many, and keep appearing on this site.

TDC have a duty to do their best to regenerate and energise Thanet, which includes some of the most deprived areas of Kent. Infratil have spent £30m on Manston so far, and have yet to make their shareholders a profit. All the East Kent residents would welcome something that benefits them. We need to find a win-win-win solution.

This is not a small decision, and the consequences will affect tens of thousands of people for years, if not decades. It's worth taking the trouble to get this one right. And everyone needs to think in the short, medium and long term.

The bid for BAWC night flights

Before I die of rage...

I should have known better. I should have been ready, but I was taken aback by the torrent of special pleading, contradictory arguments, anti-logic and selective perception of reality. Infratil's presentation to TDC (mentioned in thanetonline, and thoroughly bewailed by Brother Stephen at St. Opmanston's) is a leading contender for the crappiest piece of work this year.

Bear in mind, dear reader, that this is a presentation from a multi-million dollar enterprise to a strategic partner on whom it is pinning its future hopes. I'll take you on a guided tour of the particularly crappy bits later, but for the moment, try this: here are all the reasons that KIA spelled out to TDC as to why night flights are a bad thing...

No mention of the 40,000 people in Ramsgate, or the 35,000 in Herne Bay, or the 30,000 in Whitstable, or the 45,000 in Canterbury. The poor sods who will be living under the night-flying aircraft.

Thanks a million, Matt. Sleep tight.

The Background Story

Manston a.k.a. Kent International Airport is an ex-RAF base in north-east Kent, just west of Ramsgate. It passed from the RAF to Wiggins, then PlaneStation, owners of EUJet (a budget passenger airline). EUJet went bust, and in August 2005 the administrators sold Manston to Infratil, a New Zealand-based multi-national infrastructure investor.

There is a "Section 106 Agreement" (S106) between Infratil and Thanet District Council (TDC) which regulates how Infratil can use Manston - they can't suddenly decide to turn it into a spaceport and launch satellites, for example. The scale of Infratil's planned growth is enough to require the S106 to be renegotiated, which would require a period of public consultation lasting 6 months.

The S106 states that Infratil isn't allowed to schedule any night flights, although a scheduled flight that arrives late can actually land. A night flight is any take-off or landing between 11pm and 7am. Infratil have said they want more night flights.

Many more people have a stake in this than just Infratil and TDC - East Kent residents under the flightpaths, particularly in Ramsgate, but also in the Wantsum villages, Herne Bay, Whitstable and Canterbury will all be affected to some degree. Environmental groups, transport lobbies, government bodies, wildlife groups and others also have an interest. The non-partisan KIA Consultative Committee provides a valuable forum for all the interested parties to meet and discuss.

A key issue for local residents is noise. Obviously, the nearer a plane is (in both distance and height) the louder the noise; and if everything else is particularly quiet (at night) it will sound louder anyway. Which is why flightpaths, plane heights, flight times and monitoring are so important.

TDC have a duty to do their best to regenerate and energise Thanet, which includes some of the most deprived areas of Kent. Infratil have spent £30m on Manston so far, and have yet to make their shareholders a profit. All the East Kent residents would welcome something that benefits them. We need a win-win-win solution.