Cambridge City Airport , previously Marshall Airport Cambridge UK, is a regional airport in
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the ...
, England. It is located on the eastern outskirts of
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...
, south of
Newmarket Road and west of the village of
Teversham
Teversham is a small village in Cambridgeshire located roughly from Fulbourn, and is roughly from the centre of Cambridge. It is small compared to neighbouring villages. Although just a few hundred metres from the edge of Cambridge it is bord ...
, from the centre of Cambridge and approximately from London.
Marshall of Cambridge Aerospace Limited has a
CAA Public Use Aerodrome Licence (Number P433) that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction. The airport is available for corporate and private use, and is home to four flying schools.
Since 2016 there have been no public scheduled flights from the airport.
History
Early years
![Marshalls Airport Control and Office](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/Marshalls_Airport_Control_and_Office.jpg)
Opened in 1938, when it replaced the old airfield at
Fen Ditton
Fen Ditton is a village on the northeast edge of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire, England. The parish covers an area of .
Fen Ditton lies on the east bank of the River Cam, on the road from Cambridge to Clayhithe, and close to junction 34 of the A ...
, the airport is owned and operated by
Marshall Aerospace
Marshall Group, formerly Marshall of Cambridge and Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, is a British company headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. Subsidiaries include Marshall Aerospace, an aircraft maintenance, modification, and desig ...
, a Cambridge-based company with many years' history servicing
civilian
Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not " combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant ...
and military contracts. The main building, which is a Grade II
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
, was designed by the architect
Harold Tomlinson of the University of Cambridge and constructed in 1936–37.
[Marshalls Cambridge Airport Control and Office Building, Teversham]
British listed buildings. Retrieved 20 May 2013. For many years it was the base for the
Cambridge University Air Squadron
Cambridge University Air Squadron, abbreviated CUAS, formed in 1925, is the training unit of the Royal Air Force at the University of Cambridge and forms part of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. It is the oldest of 15 University Air Squadr ...
.
During the
Second World War
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 opposi ...
the site was used by the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
as RAF Cambridge.
The following units were here at some point:
*
No. 2 Civilian Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit RAF (July 1951 - March 1953)
*
No. 2 Squadron RAF
*
No. 4 (Supplementary) Flying Instructors School RAF (July 1940 - January 1942) became
No. 4 Flying Instructors School RAF (January - April 1942) became
No. 4 Flying Instructors School (Elementary) RAF (April 1942 - April 1943)
*
No. 5 Air Experience Flight RAF (July 1958 - September 1966 & September 1967 - ?)
*
No. 16 Squadron RAF
*
No. 22 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School RAF (February 1938 - September 1939) became
No. 22 Elementary Flying Training School RAF
This is a List of Reserve flying schools of the Royal Air Force
Elementary and Reserve Flying Training Schools
Elementary Flying Training Schools
Reserve Flying Schools
References Citations
Bibliography
*
{{RAF unit types
Lists of ...
(September 1939 - May 1947) became
No. 22 Reserve Flying School RAF (May 1947 - June 1954)
*
No. 26 Squadron RAF
No. 26 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was formed in 1915 and was disbanded for the last time in 1976.
The squadron's motto is ''N Wagter in die Lug'' (Afrikaans) (A guard in the sky), and the badge is a springbok's head couped.
History 1915 ...
*
No. 54 Maintenance Unit RAF (October 1940 - March 1945)
*
No. 105 Gliding School RAF (May 1945 - September 1955)
*
No. 239 Squadron RAF
No. 239 Squadron RAF was an anti-submarine squadron of the Royal Air Force during World War I. During World War II the squadron performed as an army co-operation squadron and later as a night intruder unit. After the war the squadron was disbande ...
*
No. 268 Squadron RAF
* Detachment of
Roc Flight RAF (October - November 1940)
Development since the 2000s
![General Aircraft (GA) parking at Cambridge Airport - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/General_Aircraft_%28GA%29_parking_at_Cambridge_Airport_-_geograph.org.uk_-_584705.jpg)
In 2000, a proposal was created to relocate the airport to a new site away from the city, which would have freed up of land for the building of several thousand new homes. A study for a new airport was undertaken by
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the ...
County Council and
planning permission
Planning permission or developmental approval refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. It is usually given in the form of a building per ...
was requested but withdrawn. In April 2010 Marshall Aerospace again announced it would not be moving from Cambridge Airport to make way for new housing.
RAF Mildenhall
Royal Air Force Mildenhall or RAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located near Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as a Royal Air Force station, it primarily supports United States Air Force (USAF) operations, ...
,
Waterbeach Barracks
Waterbeach Barracks' is a former military installation in Waterbeach, Cambridgeshire. The site was an RAF Station, RAF Waterbeach and then used by the Royal Engineers, part of the British Army, from 1966, until 2013 when the site closed to make ...
and
RAF Wyton
Royal Air Force Wyton or more simply RAF Wyton is a Royal Air Force station near St Ives, Cambridgeshire, England. The airfield is decommissioned and is now home to the Joint Forces Intelligence Group.
History Flying station
Wyton has b ...
were considered as alternative sites but Marshall concluded there were "no suitable relocation options".
[Cambridge Airport will not move into Waterbeach Barracks]
, ''Eastern Daily Press'', 21 July 2011.
In October 2008, to coincide with the opening of the new Marshall Business Aviation Centre, the airport's name was changed from Cambridge City Airport to Marshall Airport Cambridge UK. The name was changed again to Cambridge Airport in 2011 as plans were announced for an expansion of the airport following the installation of instrument landing systems and new hangars.
[Cambridge Airport sets out plans for future]
BBC Cambridgeshire news website, 13 January 2011.
In 2012 the airport introduced charter flights to Italy as well as regular flights to the Channel Islands. These were the first scheduled flights from the airport since 2006.
[Direct flights between Cambridge and Jersey return]
BBC Jersey news website, 2 February 2012.[Cambridge Airport reinstates scheduled flights]
BBC Cambridgeshire news website, 12 May 2012. In mid 2013 the airport completed a £1m refurbishment of its passenger terminal to handle new international airline services and in March 2015
British Airways
British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main hub at Heathrow Airport.
The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and passengers ...
commenced daily scheduled services to
Gothenburg operated by franchise
Sun-Air of Scandinavia
SUN-AIR of Scandinavia A/S, usually shortened to SUN-AIR, is a Danish regional airline headquartered in Billund, with its main base at Billund Airport. It operates scheduled services as a franchise of British Airways using their name and corp ...
.
Using 32 seat Dornier 328JET aircraft, to begin with 20 seats were reserved by AstraZeneca in order to connect its two main European offices.
Passenger services were reported as "to end on 31 January 2016",
[Cambridge Airport axes charter and scheduled passenger flights]
, '' Cambridge News'', 2 December 2015. although British Airways/Sun-Air continued temporarily to operate flights from Cambridge to Gothenburg. Since 24 March 2016 tickets have not been available to the general public. As of November 2017 the flights now originate in Manchester with a brief stop in Cambridge.
In November 2019 the local
FBO changed hands from
ExecuJet to
Cambridge Jet Centre which is managed by the Airport directly.
Prospective closure
In May 2019,
Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group
Marshall Group, formerly Marshall of Cambridge and Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, is a British company headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. Subsidiaries include Marshall Aerospace, an aircraft maintenance, modification, and desig ...
, owners of the airport, announced that the airport would be closed to all traffic by 2030 at the latest. The Group plans to redevelop the airport site for around 12,000 homes and of business premises.
, the Group was deciding between three potential airfields for its continuing operations:
Duxford
Duxford is a village in Cambridgeshire, England, about south of Cambridge. It is part of the Hundred Parishes area.
History
The village formed on the banks of the River Cam, a little below its emergence from the hills of north Essex. One of t ...
and
Wyton in Cambridgeshire, and
Cranfield
Cranfield is a village and civil parish in the west of Bedfordshire, England, situated between Bedford and Milton Keynes. It had a population of 4,909 in 2001. increasing to 5,369 at the 2011 Census. The parish is in Central Bedfordshire uni ...
in Bedfordshire.
In January 2020, the Group ruled out moving to
Duxford
Duxford is a village in Cambridgeshire, England, about south of Cambridge. It is part of the Hundred Parishes area.
History
The village formed on the banks of the River Cam, a little below its emergence from the hills of north Essex. One of t ...
due to incompatibility between the defence requirements of the Group and the requirements of the local traffic.
On 6 October 2020,
Cranfield University and MADG announced that they had signed an option agreement for the potential relocation of Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group (MADG) to
Cranfield Airport
Cranfield Airport is an airfield just outside the village of Cranfield, in Bedfordshire, England. It is south-west of Bedford and east of Milton Keynes. It was originally a World War II aerodrome, RAF Cranfield. It is now used for business a ...
.
A spokesperson for MADG cautioned that "it is important to note that the signing of the option agreement does not represent a final decision".
Statistics
See also
*
List of airports in the United Kingdom
This list of airports in the United Kingdom is a partial list of public active aerodromes (airports and airfields) in the UK and the British Crown Dependencies. Most private airfields are not listed. For a list ranked by volume of traffic, see ...
*
Oxford-Cambridge Arc
*
Transport in East Anglia
*
Suckling Airways
References
Citations
Bibliography
*
External links
Official website
{{authority control
1938 establishments in England
Airports in England
Airport, Cambridge
Airport, Cambridge
Airports in the East of England