AirportsUK

The autumn issue of #AirportOperator magazine is out, featuring articles on Aberdeen International Airport, Belfast International Airport, and Newcastle International Airport, as well as a piece from Neil Robinson, the new chair of Sustainable Aviation about the next phase of the coalition’s journey. https://lnkd.in/eptcPmvZ

Thank you to Heathrow for hosting our second AirportsUK #FireSafety sub-working group. It provided a valuable opportunity for members in #healthandsafety, #rescueandfirefighting and #fire specialisms to discuss how this new group can support all our members in exchanging #bestpractice and ensure alignment with regulations. A special thank you goes to our co-chairs, Mark Proudley, Kabbe Njie, BEng (Hons), ACABE, MIFSM, CIWFM, AIFireE, John Moriarty and to Oliver Charnock-Crawford and Wendy Lin for helping to ensure the smooth running of this meeting. We look forward to seeing you all again on 8th May, where we will discuss #firesafetymanagement, #EVfiresafety controls for the #airsideenvironment, and managing #firerisks associated with #lithiumion batteries across the airport estate.

***TRANSPORT SECRETARY TO DELIVER KEYNOTE SPEECH AT AIRPORTSUK ANNUAL DINNER 2025*** We are delighted to announce that the Rt Hon Heidi Alexander MP, Secretary of State for Transport, will be the guest of honour and keynote speaker at the AirportsUK Annual Dinner 2025, held at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House London on Tuesday 18 March. So book your tables now to hear her views on the role that airports and aviation will play in economic growth under her government, and how she is making the case for policy reforms: https://lnkd.in/ecwtKnXS. This year's dinner promises to be the best ever, with a drinks reception to welcome guests on the night, a sumptuous three-course meal prepared by one of the best kitchens in London and entertainment before we can share in a drink to celebrate all we have accomplished this year. So join us for the crown jewel in the aviation sector's social calendar, along with the Transport Secretary, ministers, officials, MPs, Lords, media, colleagues and old friends from across the world of aviation. We look forward to seeing you on Tuesday 18 March 2025 for what promises to be a glittering evening. For further information please email annualdinner25@airportsuk.org and visit https://lnkd.in/ei_zfArw for pictures of Annual Dinners past.

Today (Wednesday 29 January 2025) in a speech in Oxford, Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced support for expansion of the UK’s airports capacity. Commenting on these comments, Karen Dee, chief executive of AirportsUK, the trade association for UK airports, said: “Airports make an enormous contribution to the economy, connecting businesses, facilitating imports and exports, bringing in investment and creating jobs.   “Expanding capacity will support growth in all these areas and will not come at the expense of our sustainability goals”.   “New, cleaner fuels, more efficient and quieter aircraft, decarbonised airport operations and modernisation of our airspace will all ensure aviation is able to meet its obligations, alongside growth.”   “The chancellor is right to get behind airports as key engines for economic growth and to prioritise policies that can help deliver additional global connectivity. The latest analysis for AirportsUK by the economic analysts Steer, found that airports contribute over £27bn of gross added value to the UK economy and support over 270,000 jobs. These numbers increase to £53bn and over 660,000 jobs when airlines are added, and to almost £64bn and 1m jobs when tourism and international students are taken into consideration. The same research found that almost £100bn of UK GVA depends on air freight, representing 4.3% of the total measure of UK output. Commenting on the aviation impact on UK industries, Dee continued: “Sectors as diverse as transport equipment, pharmaceuticals, the creative industries and clothing rely on good air links, to the tune of billions of pounds of value.   “Growing connectivity into global markets will support these sectors and countless others, creating jobs, bringing new customers to our goods and services, and opening new opportunities for investment.” Steer data shows that GVA worth £16bn for transport equipment, £14.6bn for pharmaceuticals, £5.2bn for the creative arts and entertainment, and £3.5bn for clothing is dependent on air freight. Commenting on the regional impacts, Dee said: “Aviation’s contributions are also shared across the entire country, with all regions of the UK benefitting through increased trade opportunities brought about by better connectivity.   “Supporting airports is to support local businesses, create jobs in our towns and cities, and help hard working, ordinary people of the UK go on holiday and visit family every year.” AirportsUK’s data provided by Steer shows that £10.4bn or 6.5% of the economy of the West Midlands is reliant on air freight, with similar figures for Wales (£5.3bn or 7.1%), the North East (£5.3bn or 8.4%), the East Midlands (£8.2bn or 6.4%) and the North West (£13.8bn or 6.3%).

✈ How do airports shape the future of economic growth? GIIA’s Harvey Chandler took the stage at AirportsUK’s Annual Conference 2024: Flightpath to Growth, to explore this critical question as part of a panel discussing the pivotal role airports play as economic enablers in the UK. During the session, Harvey shared insights into how airports drive investment and growth, aligning with the UK Government’s ambitious growth mission. Drawing from GIIA’s latest Infrastructure Pulse Survey ➡ (https://lnkd.in/eivHM4kV), he unpacked the relative attractiveness of the UK for infrastructure investors compared to global markets—a crucial perspective for shaping the future of aviation and infrastructure. Harvey also delved into the impact of recent fiscal, policy, and regulatory developments, shedding light on how these factors influence the investment climate. He emphasised the importance of creating a supportive and predictable regulatory environment to unlock the full potential of infrastructure investment and ensure the UK remains competitive on the global stage.

We are delighted that our chief executive, Karen Dee, was able to participate in 'Advancing Aviation' produced by ITN Business. UK #airports are among the busiest in Europe and the aviation industry is one of the strongest in the world, contributing over £22 billion annually to the #economy. As travel returns to the levels last witnessed before the pandemic, this programme explores the opportunities to ensure the country remains a global leader in aviation. Hosted by Sharon Thomas, the full programme is available via the ITN Business Hub: https://lnkd.in/e89A8G8n. #AdvancingAviation #Aviation

REGISTRATIONS OPEN: AirportsUK Annual Dinner 2025 Tuesday 18 March 2025 We are delighted to announce that registration is now open for the 2025 AirportsUK Annual Dinner, the highlight of the #aviation sector’s social calendar. Join us from 7pm on Tuesday 18 March 2025, along with 800 other senior representatives from #airports, #government, #airlines, suppliers and the #media as we celebrate the sector’s achievements and look ahead to the year to come. For this year’s dinner, we will be returning to the Grosvenor House London, Park Lane and the historic Great Room, originally an ice rink where Princess Elizabeth, the future Queen Elizabeth II, learnt to skate in 1933. It is sure to be a brilliant night, so don't miss out, register now! For further information, please visit https://lnkd.in/ecwtKnXS. Pictures from past Annual Dinners, as well as other AirportsUK events can be found at https://lnkd.in/ezfVs3Ce.

The final session of the day saw two panels, one on #resilience and the #passengerexperience and another on #sustainability and #environmental performance, and an interview with Baroness Charlotte Vere, former #aviation minister. On resilience, there was broad agreement that the picture was improving in all areas but that there was still work to be done. Speakers highlighted the #investment that is going into #airport facilities, to make terminals more comfortable for passengers, the journey through #security smoother, and access to gates and boarding easier. The #regulators on the panel were also positive that they had the right policies and resources in place to ensure that they could deal with any issues that arise, such as another outage in the air traffic control system. All sides were keen to support the government’s initiative led by Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson to drive improvements in #accessibility for passengers who require special assistance. Similarly for sustainability, panellists felt that aviation and airports in particular had a good story to tell, with panellists pointing to the obvious progress in developing a #sustainableaviationfuel industry, but also more broadly. This included in #hydrogen powered flight and in #decarbonising airport #operations through #renewable power generation, energy saving measures, and switching to #electricvehicles. More localised environmental impacts, such as #noise and #airpollution, was also held up as an example of where work was progressing. New, cleaner, quieter aircraft were making real differences to communities, reducing significantly the amount of noise and air pollution over the coming years as fleets are replaced. #Airspacemodernisation will also have huge benefits for most areas in regards to these impacts. To end the day, Baroness Vere joined Katie Prescott onstage to give us her views on how aviation can approach the challenges and ensure that government takes the decisions it needs to support the sector. Her insight into how we ought to frame our arguments, around local, specific impacts and emphasise what the effects of government’s decisions will have on people’s living standards. She also put out a plea to continue engaging with her and her colleagues in the House of Lords, who can be an excellent source of advice on how to engage with the political process, as well as put pressure on government. Finally, there was also just time for her to rank her preferences in terms of policy areas while she was a minister and needless to say, aviation came out on top! #flightpathtogrowth #airportsukconf2024

Following lunch, delegates came back to a panel considering the challenges around building a modern #workforce and how we can encourage people from a wider range of backgrounds to consider a career at an #airport. The panel featured Wilma Allan from London City Airport, Jennifer Coupland from IfATE (Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education), Emma Crossland from MAG (Airports Group) and Kerissa Khan DSc, FRAeS from the Royal Aeronautical Society. A fascinating discussion that took in the need for greater #collaboration between all parties involved, changes to the #apprenticeship regime, increased mentoring across our organisations, and reforms to regulations that would allow people to come here from overseas. That being said, it was also made clear that any changes should be careful not to undo all the good work being done! Culture change was high on the list of ways that the situation can be improved as well, with parents being better informed about the #career prospects that are offered by #aviation. Too often, children are presented with more well known options, failing to realise that a job in #airtrafficcontrol is available, highly skilled and extremely well remunerated. Accessing schools’ careers services might be one way to accomplish this. Then we were joined by Fleet Street legend and political editor at the Financial Times, George Parker, who provided the audience with his insights into the first five months of this government, while signposting them to what to look out for in 2025. George was clear that Downing Street was not happy with how the first few months of the Starmer ministry has gone, and that steps were being taken, including today’s reset to wrest the narrative back onto a more positive path. George was also clear about the strong position that airports found themselves in, particularly as the government has made much of its ambition to drive economic growth. Given the role that airports play in encouraging inward investment, establishing trade routes, creating jobs, this should be a big positive for us as we seek to influence ministers and officials on a range of issues. #flightpathtogrowth #airportsukconf24

Following the coffee break, the focus turned to the impact that #airports have on #investment and #growth across the whole of the UK. Given the specific situation of airports and their locations in every region of the country, they are vital hubs for wealth creation, #jobs, bringing in investment, and playing a role in their local #communities. First, we heard from Peter Wiener and Martin Lavrilloux from the consultancy Steer, who presented on the analysis they have just concluded for AirportsUK. This highlighted the #economic importance of airports across all regions and economic sectors of the UK, contributing over £1bn per week to UK gross value added, as well as supporting another almost £2bn per week in exports by air freight. The following panel, which included Vincent Hodder from Leeds Bradford Airport, Harvey C. from the Global Infrastructure Investor Association (GIIA), Jordan Cummins from the CBI (Confederation of British Industry) and Andrew Macmillan of MAG (Airports Group), took this discussion out of the academic and into the real world. There was much discussion about how airports need to be considered by government in any development of an industrial strategy, as a key enabler of those high performing sectors and their efforts to reach global markets. We were able to really drill down into some of the local aspects of airports and their importance, with Vincent in particular making the point that Leeds Bradford is a key strategic asset to West Yorkshire and the wider region. The priority should be in ensuring these key economic hubs are able to continue operating and growing, without excess burdens and costs that make them unattractive from a competitive perspective. Finally, our moderator, Katie Prescott, interviewed John Dickie, chief executive of BusinessLDN on his vast experience engaging with business and its needs, and how areas across the UK can replicate the success of London. He reiterated the need for aviation to be seen as a strategic transport method, given the position of the UK as an island trading nation and #services superpower, that thrives on global #connectivity. #flightpathtogrowth #airportsukconf24