London Gatwick has submitted plans to allow “routine use” of its existing Northern Runway to enable the UK airport to expand capacity.
Gatwick, the second largest airport in the London area behind Heathrow, wants its second runway, which is currently used as a taxiway, to be allowed to operate flights alongside its main runway in an application to the Planning Inspectorate.
If this move is approved, Gatwick said the Northern Runway could be operational by the end of the decade and help the airport reach capacity of 75 million passengers annually by the late 2030s. The last time Gatwick operated at its current full capacity was in 2019 when it catered for 46.6 million passengers.
Stewart Wingate, CEO of Gatwick, said: “The Northern Runway plan will help secure the long-term future of the airport and economic prosperity for thousands of families, businesses and future generations across the region.
“If approved, our plan will also improve airport resilience, meet future passenger demand and increase competition in the London airport market, by providing vital new international connections to support Global Britain.”
Gatwick, which is owned and operated by VINCI Airports and Global Infrastructure Partners, said that construction on the project could begin in 2025 and stressed that the proposals were “low impact”, with most of the work taking place within the current airport boundary.
The project would involve repositioning the centre line of the current Northern Runway 12 metres to the north to allow both runways to operate. The Northern Runway would only be used for departures.
The airport said it will make “legally binding commitments” to ensure it controls noise levels and carbon emissions under its direct control. These measures include the creation of a “noise envelope”, with the commitment of reducing noise to below 2019 levels within nine years of opening the Northern Runway.
Gatwick’s move comes as uncertainty continues to surround proposed expansion at nearby London Heathrow, the UK’s hub airport.
Heathrow was given the green light to build a third runway by the UK parliament in 2018 but the project has been on “pause” as the airport recovers from the Covid-19 crisis.
The UK’s Supreme Court ruled the project could proceed in 2020 after it overturned a lower court’s ruling against the runway proposal on environmental grounds.