Bournemouth Airport (previously known as Hurn Airport and Bournemouth International Airport) is an airport located north-northeast of
Bournemouth,
in southern England. The site opened as
RAF Hurn
Royal Air Force Hurn or more simply RAF Hurn is a former Royal Air Force station located approximately north west of Christchurch, Dorset, England
Opened in 1941, it was used by both the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Forces. D ...
in 1941, but was transferred to civil control in 1944. For a short period (between 1944 and 1946) Hurn served as London's international airport, until the opening of facilities at
Heathrow
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others bei ...
. Commercial services resumed in the late 1950s, with
Palmair
Palmair European was a British tour operator with its head office in the Space House in Bournemouth, United Kingdom. Palmair offered charter and scheduled flights on behalf of Bath Travel. Its main base was Bournemouth Airport. Palmair have ...
commencing flights to
Palma, Majorca
Palma (; ; also known as ''Palma de Mallorca'', officially between 1983–88, 2006–08, and 2012–16) is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in Spain. It is situated on the south coast of Mallorca ...
in October 1958.
Subsequently,
Ryanair and
TUI Airways
TUI Airways Limited (formerly Thomsonfly and Thomson Airways) is a British charter airline, offering scheduled and charter flights from the United Kingdom and Ireland to destinations in Europe, Africa, Asia and North America.
The airline is t ...
based aircraft at the airport, with scheduled flights now frequently serving Western Europe and the Mediterranean area, with charter and seasonal services serving North Africa, North America, and the Caribbean. Passenger numbers peaked in 2007 when just over one million passed through the airport. In 2019, the passenger total was around 803,000. This dropped to around 176,000 in 2020 due to the
COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
Ryanair and TUI Airways are the primary users of the airport, which was owned and operated by
Manchester Airports Group (MAG), one of the largest British airport operators until December 2017, when
Regional & City Airports (RCA) acquired Bournemouth Airport for an undisclosed amount.
Location
Bournemouth Airport is situated on the edge of
Hurn
Hurn is a village and civil parish in the historic county of Hampshire and the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. Situated between the River Stour and River Avon, administratively Hurn is part of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole uni ...
village in the
BCP Council area, north of Bournemouth, west of the A338 and approximately south west of London. The airport is accessible via the
A31 from the
M27 and
M3 motorways to the east, and via the
A35 to the west. The nearest other airport serving the area is
Southampton Airport
Southampton Airport is an international airport located in both Eastleigh and Southampton, Hampshire in the United Kingdom. The airport is located north-north-east of central Southampton. The southern tip of the runway lies within the Sou ...
.
History
Before
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Bournemouth's airport was
Christchurch Airfield
: ''For the World War II use of this facility, see RAF Christchurch''
Christchurch Airfield was located southeast of the A337/B3059 intersection in Somerford, Christchurch, Dorset, England.
It was a civil airfield starting from 1926, then it wa ...
.
1940s
From November 1944, the airfield took over from
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
's
Whitchurch airport as the main operating base for
British Overseas Airways Corporation
British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the British state-owned airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. After the pass ...
until
Heathrow
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others bei ...
fully opened in 1948.
Starting in October 1945, Hurn served as London's
transatlantic airport until Heathrow opened to the airlines in mid-1946. In that rôle, it participated in the "First Commercial Land Plane Flight Overseas" from the United States, on 23 October. (That intercontinental flight in the
Douglas DC-4
The Douglas DC-4 is an American four-engined (piston), propeller-driven airliner developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. Military versions of the plane, the C-54 and R5D, served during World War II, in the Berlin Airlift and into the 1 ...
involved refueling stops at Gander, Newfoundland and Shannon in the Republic of Ireland.)
In January 1946
Pan Am
Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and commonly known as Pan Am, was an American airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States ...
opened a scheduled New York (
La Guardia) to London (Hurn) service, five days a week, using the new
DC-4
The Douglas DC-4 is an American four-engined (piston), propeller-driven airliner developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. Military versions of the plane, the C-54 and R5D, served during World War II, in the Berlin Airlift and into the 1960s. ...
; the journey time was 17hours 40minutes. It was also the starting point of the first England-Australia landplane service, which took three days in
Avro Lancastrian
The Avro 691 Lancastrian was a Canadian and British passenger and mail transport aircraft of the 1940s and 1950s developed from the Avro Lancaster heavy bomber. The Lancaster was named after Lancaster, Lancashire; a Lancastrian is an inhabita ...
s (modified
Lancaster bomber
The Avro Lancaster is a British Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to the same specification, as well as the Short Stirling ...
s).
1950s–1980s
First charter flights
The first
Palmair
Palmair European was a British tour operator with its head office in the Space House in Bournemouth, United Kingdom. Palmair offered charter and scheduled flights on behalf of Bath Travel. Its main base was Bournemouth Airport. Palmair have ...
charter from the airport took place in 1958, using a single 36-seat
Viking
Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
aircraft destined for
Palma de Mallorca. The service was one of the first charter flights in the United Kingdom.
Aircraft manufacture
Vickers-Armstrongs
Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, w ...
took over some ex-BOAC hangars at Hurn in 1951 and started production of
Varsities, then
Viscounts
A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status.
In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...
and eventually, as the
British Aircraft Corporation, the
BAC One-Eleven. During a 33-year period, 222 One-Elevens, 146 Varsities and 279 Viscounts were built and delivered from Hurn making a total of 647 produced at this site.
Some of the development of the ill-fated
TSR-2
The British Aircraft Corporation TSR-2 is a cancelled Cold War strike and reconnaissance aircraft developed by the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC), for the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The TSR-2 was designed ...
was also done here (although assembly and flight testing was carried out at
Warton, Lancs), as well as the production of
Jet Provost
The BAC Jet Provost is a British jet trainer aircraft that was in use with the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1955 to 1993. It was originally developed by Hunting Percival from the earlier piston engine-powered Percival Provost basic trainer, an ...
wings; other components were manufactured here for
Concorde
The Aérospatiale/BAC Concorde () is a retired Franco-British supersonic airliner jointly developed and manufactured by Sud Aviation (later Aérospatiale) and the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC).
Studies started in 1954, and France an ...
, the
Panavia Tornado
The Panavia Tornado is a family of twin-engine, variable-sweep wing multirole combat aircraft, jointly developed and manufactured by Italy, the United Kingdom and West Germany. There are three primary Tornado variants: the Tornado IDS ( in ...
and
Short Skyvan. The closure of the British Aerospace site in 1984 ended Bournemouth's role as a significant player in the aircraft manufacturing industry. The former aircraft factory now forms one of Dorset's largest industrial sites, including a base for
Cobham plc
Cobham Limited is a British aerospace manufacturing company based in Bournemouth, England.
Cobham was originally founded by Sir Alan Cobham as Flight Refuelling Limited (FRL) in 1934. During 1939, British airline Imperial Airways performed s ...
.
College of Air Traffic Control
Adjacent to the entrance to Bournemouth Airport was the College of Air Traffic Control, operated by
NATS, the now privatised provider of air traffic control services in the UK. Established by the
Ministry of Civil Aviation as the School of Air Traffic Control in 1949, the establishment was retitled as a college in 1962. Students from home and abroad were trained in all aspects of
ATC operations and went on to work throughout the world. Electronic computer-based ATC simulators were widely employed. Usefully situated at an operational airfield, for a considerable period training in approach radar control was facilitated by the airport ATC unit. Students were able to practise live radar control exercises using temporarily detached Civil Aviation Flying Unit
Dove
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
aircraft as live targets. The building was also the home to the Air Traffic Control Evaluation Unit, responsible for developing technology used within the service.
During 2011, NATS transferred ATC training to its headquarters facility at
Whiteley
Whiteley is a community in the county of Hampshire, England, near Fareham. The development straddles the boundary between two council districts: the Borough of Fareham to the south and east, and the city of Winchester to the north and west.
L ...
near Southampton. The Hurn facility was purchased by a
free school, Parkfield School, serving Bournemouth and the local area.
First British woman air traffic controller
Yvonne Pope Sintes
Yvonne Pope Sintes (8 September 1930 – 16 August 2021) was a South African-born British aviator. She was the first female air traffic controller at Gatwick airport and later became Britain's first female commercial airline captain.
Early life ...
was the first British woman air traffic controller and worked at Bournemouth Airport when first qualified, before graduating to Gatwick and later becoming Britain's first female commercial airline captain.
Change of ownership
In 1969, the airport was purchased jointly by the Bournemouth Corporation and Dorset County Council and renamed as "Bournemouth Hurn Airport",
later to become Bournemouth International Airport. The new owners decided to redevelop the facility as a commercial airport and, by 1980, the airport became used by charter airlines, when
European Aviation began services.
1990s–2000s
In 1993, the airport received its first regular passenger flights when Palmair
wet leased
Aircraft leases are leases used by airlines and other aircraft operators. Airlines lease aircraft from other airlines or leasing companies for two main reasons: to operate aircraft without the financial burden of buying them, and to provide tempora ...
its first aircraft and
European Aviation Air Charter
European Aviation Air Charter was an airline based in Bournemouth, United Kingdom. It operated ad hoc charter services, VIP flights, and inclusive-tour and sub-charter flights, as well as ACMI wet leases for other airlines. Its main base was ...
(EAC) started operations. In 1995, the airport was sold to
National Express
National Express Group is a British multinational public transport company headquartered in Birmingham, England. It operates bus, coach, train and tram services in the United Kingdom, Ireland (National Express operates Eurolines in conjunction ...
and then, in March 2001, was acquired by the
Manchester Airports Group, which was at that time the second-largest owner of UK airports.
In 1996, an extension to the main runway was officially opened by the arrival of
Concorde
The Aérospatiale/BAC Concorde () is a retired Franco-British supersonic airliner jointly developed and manufactured by Sud Aviation (later Aérospatiale) and the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC).
Studies started in 1954, and France an ...
. Travel agency Bath Travel chartered Concorde for supersonic champagne lunches across the Bay of Biscay.
Ryanair also began services from Bournemouth to Dublin with a
Boeing 737-200
The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton Factory in Washington.
Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating with two u ...
.
Since 2001, a
Boeing 747SP
The Boeing 747SP (for ''Special Performance'') is a shortened version of the Boeing 747 wide-body airliner, designed for a longer range.
Boeing needed a smaller aircraft to compete with the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 and Lockheed L-1011 TriStar ...
has been based at the airport; it is used by the
Royal Family of Qatar and other VIP government staff from the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...
state of
Qatar
Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it ...
. The aircraft is often stored in the former BASCO building (Hangar 12) and is a regular visitor to
Zürich Airport and
Heathrow
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others bei ...
.
In late 2001, Bournemouth Flying Club took the leap into full commercial flight training and established Bournemouth Commercial Flight Training on the former SFT site adjacent to the threshold for runway 08. Bournemouth Commercial Flight Training (BCFT) has adapted and expanded throughout its history, contributing to the overall success of the airport and continuing to make Bournemouth Airport important to the overall commercial flight training in the UK.
Bath Travel's Palmair remained the prime user of the airport, with a 737-200 permanently based there. In 2005,
Thomsonfly
Thomsonfly was a British charter and scheduled airline. Thomsonfly was the first stage of TUI AG's plans to expand its business within TUI UK prior to September 2007. After TUI UK merged with First Choice Holidays in September 2007, it beca ...
became the first major low-cost airline to establish a hub at Bournemouth, allocating two Boeing 737-300 aircraft for scheduled services to Europe and (in 2008) to the Caribbean. Also in 2005,
Air Berlin
Air Berlin PLC & Co. Luftverkehrs KG (), branded as airberlin or airberlin.com was a major German airline. At its peak, it was Germany's second-largest airline, as well as Europe's tenth-largest airline in terms of passengers carried. It was h ...
and
EasyJet
EasyJet plc (styled as easyJet) is a British multinational low-cost airline group headquartered at London Luton Airport. It operates domestic and international scheduled services on 927 routes in more than 34 countries via its affiliate airli ...
began services by announcing routes to Paderborn and Geneva respectively. Air Berlin have now ceased operations at the airport. The airport previously had a daily service to the
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
provided by the Jersey-based
Blue Islands
Blue Islands Limited is a British regional airline of the Channel Islands. Its head office is in Saint Peter, Jersey, and its registered office is in Saint Anne, Alderney. It operates scheduled services from and within the Channel Islands to ...
airline, which withdrew from Bournemouth in April 2009. Hungarian-based
Wizz Air
Wizz Air, legally incorporated as Wizz Air Hungary Ltd. ( hu, Wizz Air Hungary Légiközlekedési Zrt.) is a Hungarian ultra-low-cost carrier with its head office in Budapest, Hungary. The airline serves many cities across Europe, as well as s ...
also ran routes to Gdansk, Katowice, and Kraków during 2006 and 2007.
Route development
In 2007, Ryanair began to rapidly increase the number of services from the airport, initially starting routes to
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
,
Alicante
Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in t ...
, and
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
which brought the total to eight. In 2008,
Palmair
Palmair European was a British tour operator with its head office in the Space House in Bournemouth, United Kingdom. Palmair offered charter and scheduled flights on behalf of Bath Travel. Its main base was Bournemouth Airport. Palmair have ...
introduced a new series of charter flights to
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
,
Fuerteventura,
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
,
Amalfi Coast
The Amalfi Coast ( it, Costiera amalfitana) is a stretch of coastline in southern Italy overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea and the Gulf of Salerno. It is located south of the Sorrentine Peninsula and north of the Cilentan Coast.
Celebrated worldw ...
, and
Rhodes
Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the S ...
. Olympic Holidays also launched new charter flights to
Corfu and
Zakynthos
Zakynthos (also spelled Zakinthos; el, Ζάκυνθος, Zákynthos ; it, Zacinto ) or Zante (, , ; el, Τζάντε, Tzánte ; from the Venetian form) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the third largest of the Ionian Islands. Z ...
in Greece and
Larnaca
Larnaca ( el, Λάρνακα ; tr, Larnaka) is a city on the south east coast of Cyprus and the capital of the district of the same name. It is the third-largest city in the country, after Nicosia and Limassol, with a metro population of 1 ...
in Cyprus.
On 9 January 2008, Ryanair announced that they would base one of their Boeing 737-800s at Bournemouth from April 2008. During the first quarter, the airline announced routes to
Málaga,
Murcia
Murcia (, , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the seventh largest city in the country. It has a population of 460,349 inhabitants in 2021 (about one ...
,
Palma de Mallorca,
Wroclaw and the re-introduction of the
Nantes route. An additional flight each day was added to the
Glasgow Prestwick route, with the addition of a twice-daily flight to
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
. In May the same year,
Bergamo and
Beauvais routes were announced to commence in October plus a new weekly ski flight to Turin for the winter season.
Increasing from 14 routes, after the discontinuation of the Nantes route, to 18 –
Carcassonne
Carcassonne (, also , , ; ; la, Carcaso) is a French fortified city in the department of Aude, in the region of Occitanie. It is the prefecture of the department.
Inhabited since the Neolithic, Carcassonne is located in the plain of the Au ...
,
Faro,
Limoges, and
Reus
Reus () is the capital of Baix Camp, in the province of Tarragona, in Catalonia, Spain. The area has always been an important producer of wines and spirits, and gained continental importance at the time of the Phylloxera plague. Nowadays it is kno ...
were added to the route network in February 2009.
In December 2009,
bmibaby
Bmibaby Limited (styled as bmibaby.com) was a British low-cost airline that flew to destinations in the United Kingdom and Europe from its bases at Birmingham and East Midlands airports. It was a subsidiary of British Midland International, i ...
announced a new summer route to Jersey. It was the first time the airline had operated out of the airport; they provided three services a week, using a Boeing 737-500.
Again in December, Ryanair added four new routes to the network, bringing the total to 17. Another Boeing 737-800 was based at the airport and the airline projected to fly 650,000 passengers at Bournemouth, however the actual figure was lower.
Following the closure of European Aviation Air Charter, Palmair chartered various aircraft types from Jet2, Viking, Blue Line, Tor Air and Astraeus, before unveiling their new Astraeus-leased Boeing 737-500 (G-PJPJ) on 13 May 2009. The original agreement was for the aircraft to be leased until April 2012, but the airline ceased operations in October 2010.
Flybe
Flybe (pronounced ), styled as flybe, is a British airline based at Birmingham Airport, England.
History
The airline traces its history back to Jersey European Airways, which was set up in 1979 following the merger of Intra Airways and Expre ...
started services in May 2010 but discontinued services in November the same year. It led to no scheduled services from the airport. After a hiatus of services, Blue Islands recommenced services to Guernsey and Jersey on 1 November 2011. Flybe announced on 10 November 2015 that all destinations would end 27 March 2016
In September 2016 one of the UK's newest AOC's Scenic Air Tours started operations from the airport, offering pleasure/scenic flights along the south coast and aircraft rentals. The company has now expanded with a second operating base at
Durham Tees Valley Airport in the North East. The company operates two
Piper PA-28
The Piper PA-28 Cherokee is a family of two-seat or four-seat light aircraft built by Piper Aircraft and designed for flight training, air taxi and personal use.Plane and Pilot: ''1978 Aircraft Directory'', pages 62–64. Werner & Werner Corp, ...
and one
Grumman American AA-5.
In November 2016, Bournemouth based Eagle European commenced operations on its A – B AOC, flying the
Cessna 421 Golden Eagle on charter flights, focusing heavily on the medical role.
During the Summer of 2021, influenced by the ongoing pandemic and international travel restrictions, easyJet operated its first UK domestic services to Edinburgh, Belfast and later Liverpool.
Expansion
![Bournemouth Airport entrance geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/Bournemouth_Airport_entrance_geograph.org.uk_479421_24882208-by-Mike-Smith.jpg)
With the budget increased to £45million in July 2008, the upgrade will replace the arrivals terminal and upgrade the check-in and departure lounge areas. The number of aircraft stands would rise from four to 11. Christchurch Council and central government backed plans for the re-building of the airport terminal, increasing its size by 62%; work started in August 2007.
Work on the terminal itself is now complete, where the check-in areas, security control, and departure lounges have been upgraded. A new World Duty Free store has opened on the airside, as have a new
WHSmith
WHSmith (also written WH Smith, and known colloquially as Smith's and formerly as W. H. Smith & Son) is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, England, which operates a chain of high street, railway station, airport, port, hospital and m ...
store and an The Olive Tree eatery. All remaining retail space has since been completed and opened.
The new arrivals hall was completed on time and budget in July 2011. The building produces 70% less carbon dioxide than the previous facility with the design taking advantage of the building's orientation to make maximum possible use of solar gain, solar shading, daylight, and natural ventilation. These measures will reduce the need for mechanical and electrical installations which, in turn, will reduce the building's energy requirements.
Other improvements to the infrastructure around the airport include more frequent bus services to
Bournemouth Interchange and traffic lights at the entrance to the airport have been constructed.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
The following airlines operate regular scheduled, seasonal, and seasonal charter flights to and from Bournemouth:
Statistics
Passengers
Other facilities
The airport has a industrial park, including offices and
hangar
A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...
s. In early March 2009, Manchester Airport Developments completed the construction of Cirrus Court, a development of 14 industrial units which is the first part of a number of phases to redevelop the northern aviation sector.
When
Channel Express operated, its head office was in Building 470 at the airport.
[Contact Information]
." Channel Express. Retrieved on 31 December 2011. "Channel Express (Air Services) Limited Building 470 Bournemouth International Airport Christchurch Dorset. BH23 6SE."
Babcock International Group
Babcock International Group plc is a British aerospace, defence and nuclear engineering services company based in London, England. It specialises in managing complex assets and infrastructure. Although the company has civil contracts, its main b ...
has its Defence and Security offices located at the airport.
L3 CTS (formerly CTC Aviation) used to have its main U.K flight training base at the airfield with students completing basic, intermediate and advanced training there. Located on the East side from its purpose built hangar, the company operated a fleet of
Diamond DA42
The Diamond DA42 Twin Star is a four seat, twin engine, propeller-driven airplane developed and manufactured by the Chinese-owned, Austria-based company Diamond Aircraft Industries. It was Diamond's first twin engine design, as well as the f ...
,
Slingsby T67 Firefly
The Slingsby T67 Firefly, originally produced as the Fournier RF-6, is a two-seat aerobatic training aircraft, built by Slingsby Aviation in Kirkbymoorside, Yorkshire, England.
It has been used as a trainer aircraft by several armed forces, as ...
and recently
Diamond DA40
The Diamond DA40 Diamond Star is an Austrian four-seat, single-engine, light aircraft constructed from composite materials. Built in both Austria and Canada, it was developed as a four-seat version of the earlier DA20 by Diamond Aircraf ...
aircraft. Their Bournemouth base complemented its facilities in Southampton, Coventry, Ponte de Sor (Portugal), Hamilton (New Zealand) and Cranfield.
Bournemouth Commercial Flight Training and Airline Pilot Academy Operated from its main office and hangar on Aviation Park West adjacent to the
National Police Air Service
The National Police Air Service (NPAS) is a police aviation service that provides centralised air support to the 43
territorial police forces in England and Wales, as well as the three special police forces serving that area. It replaced the pr ...
(NPAS) facility. The apron provided parking for its commercial fleet including two
BE76 Duchess and four Piper PA-28 aircraft. They also had hangared aircraft belonging to the company, including a
Pilatus PC-12, a
SIAI-Marchetti SF.260, a
Beagle B.121 Pup, a
Scottish Aviation Bulldog
The Scottish Aviation Bulldog is a British two-seat side-by-side (with optional third seat) training aircraft designed by Beagle Aircraft as the B.125 Bulldog.
The prototype Bulldog flew on 19 May 1969 at Shoreham Airport. The first order for ...
, a
Partenavia P.68
The Partenavia P.68, now Vulcanair P68, is a light aircraft designed by Luigi Pascale and initially built by Italian Partenavia.
It made its first flight on 25 May 1970, its type certification was granted on 17 November 1971 and was transferred ...
and several
Robin HR 200
The Alpha Aviation Alpha 2000 is a two-seat, all-metal training and general aviation aircraft, designed by Chris Heintz and built in Hamilton, New Zealand. It continues the successful French Apex Aircraft's Robin R2000 series acquired upon Apex ...
aircraft. BCFT specialised in modular flight training whilst its sister company APA was pioneering a new and dynamic approach to Integrated Flight Training with bases at Bournemouth International Airport and
Orlando Melbourne International Airport
Melbourne Orlando International Airport is a public airport northwest of downtown Melbourne, in Brevard County, Florida, United States, and 50 miles southeast of Orlando, located on central Florida's Space Coast. The airport is reached by N ...
. It ceased operations in early September 2022.
Scenic Air Tours, an A to A AOC holder, also operates from Aviation Park West with its main base of operation at the airport, its secondary base located at
Durham Tees Valley Airport houses one of its Piper PA-28 aircraft available for Sightseeing and Aerial Photography. The Bournemouth-based fleet consists of a Piper PA-28 and Grumman American AA-5 both available for sightseeing trips and rentals.
Bournemouth is home of a dedicated
Pilatus maintenance facility, focusing on the
Pilatus PC-12, serving aircraft from across Europe. Jetfly Aviation, a fractional ownership company, uses the Bournemouth facility for its maintenance needs and has aircraft and crew based at the airport.
As well as the Pilatus maintenance facility the airport is also home to several others, all specialising in various areas of the industry. The largest for general aviation aircraft is Airtime Aviation, providing maintenance for aircraft up to the size of
Beechcraft King Air. Airtime also provide aircraft painting through its sister company, Airtime Paint, handling all kinds of aircraft including small jets. Fast Aviation also provides maintenance for general aviation aircraft and is based on the north side of the airfield. MCA provide specialist
King Air
The Beechcraft King Air is a line of American utility aircraft produced by Beechcraft. The King Air line comprises a number of twin-turboprop models that have been divided into two families. The Model 90 and 100 series developed in the 1960s ...
support and maintenance, with several worldwide contracts. Jets and Technic Air provide maintenance for Jet aircraft and smaller turboprop airliners.
Handling for General Aviation aircraft is provided by two companies, Bliss Aviation a small flight school specialising in Helicopter training provide handling for smaller aircraft such as Piper PA-28 and larger multi engine pistons like
Piper Chieftain
The Piper PA-31 Navajo is a family of cabin-class, twin-engined aircraft designed and built by Piper Aircraft for the general aviation market, most using Lycoming engines. It was also license-built in a number of Latin American countries. Ta ...
and
Beechcraft Baron
The Beechcraft Baron is a light twin-engined piston aircraft designed and produced by Beechcraft. The aircraft was introduced in 1961. A low-wing monoplane developed from the Travel Air, it remains in production.
Design and development
The d ...
. Larger corporate aircraft are handled by Signature Flight Support, often handling aircraft up to the size of
Gulfstream G650 and
Falcon 7X
The Dassault Falcon 7X is a large-cabin, range business jet manufactured by Dassault Aviation, the second largest of its Dassault Falcon line. Launched at 2001 Paris Air Show, its first flight was on 5 May 2005 and it entered service on 15 June ...
.
Accidents and incidents
* On 28 January 1972,
Vickers Viscount
The Vickers Viscount is a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner.
The Vi ...
D-ANEF of
Airwork Services was damaged beyond repair when the undercarriage collapsed after a heavy landing.
Notes
References
External links
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{{Authority control
Manchester Airports Group
Transport in Dorset
Transport in Bournemouth
Buildings and structures in Christchurch, Dorset
Airports established in 1941
1941 establishments in England
Airports in South West England