As Blackpool Airport shut its doors for the final time yesterday the Airport Operators Association (AOA) has urged the government to do more to help smaller regional airports.
The AOA’s CEO Darren Caplan said the government and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) must recognise how “crucial” smaller airports are for local businesses and inbound and outbound tourism.
“We believe in a competitive airport sector, but it is hard to compete with hands tied behind your back,” said Caplan. “So we call on the CAA as the aviation regulator to help keep costs down in future; and we call on the Treasury to review the impact APD is having on the UK’s connectivity and economy, with a view to reducing it as soon as possible".
Blackpool has now joined Manston and Plymouth in the list of airports that have closed, which Caplan said is to the “detriment of local communities and those who work and rely on the airports.”
Caplan added: “Smaller airports have to cope with increasing fixed costs, required to enable them to fulfil their regulatory obligations.
“They also have to cope with an APD level which is the highest in the world and which goes up every year. Passengers often have to pay between a quarter and half their fare in APD, which not only affects passengers numbers but also route development and the frequency in which airlines operate,” he said.