Kent International Airport
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Manston Airport was a British airport. It was branded as Manston, Kent International Airport and was located in the parish of
Minster-in-Thanet Minster, also known as Minster-in-Thanet, is a village and civil parish in the Thanet District of Kent, England. It is the site of Minster in Thanet Priory. The village is west of Ramsgate (which is the post town) and to the north east of Cant ...
and partly adjacent to the village of Manston in the
Thanet Thanet may refer to: *Isle of Thanet, a former island, now a peninsula, at the most easterly point of Kent, England *Thanet District, a local government district containing the island *Thanet College, former name of East Kent College *Thanet Canal, ...
district of
Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
, England, north-east of
Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...
. Formerly the site of
RAF Manston Royal Air Force Manston or more simply RAF Manston is a former Royal Air Force station located in the north-east of Kent, at on the Isle of Thanet from 1916 until 1996. The site was split between a commercial airport Kent International Airpo ...
, it was briefly known as London Manston Airport. The single runway was located about from the coastline at above
sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...
. It had the 11th-longest civilian runway in the United Kingdom (after
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 ...
's two runways,
Gatwick Gatwick Airport (), also known as London Gatwick , is a major international airport near Crawley, West Sussex, England, south of Central London. In 2021, Gatwick was the third-busiest airport by total passenger traffic in the UK, after H ...
,
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
,
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
,
Stansted London Stansted Airport is a tertiary international airport serving London, England, United Kingdom. It is located near Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex, England, northeast of Central London. London Stansted serves over 160 destinations acro ...
,
East Midlands The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Li ...
,
Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...
,
Prestwick Prestwick ( gd, Preastabhaig) is a town in South Ayrshire on the west coast of Ayrshire in Scotland about southwest of Glasgow. It adjoins the larger town of Ayr to the south on the Firth of Clyde coast, the centre of which is about south, an ...
and Belfast International), in length. Manston was capable of handling some of the larger long-haul aircraft, but the runway was not long enough for the largest passenger or freight types at their maximum takeoff weights. The runway was originally built with three "lanes" 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 opposin ...
to handle emergencies, and is among the widest in Europe. Since 2015 the airport has been used as an emergency lorry park in the event of temporary cross-Channel traffic problems. The owners of the airport propose to reopen the airport for flights in early 2025.


History


Origins

At the outset of the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the
Isle of Thanet The Isle of Thanet () is a peninsula forming the easternmost part of Kent, England. While in the past it was separated from the mainland by the Wantsum Channel, it is no longer an island. Archaeological remains testify to its settlement in anc ...
was equipped with a small and precarious landing strip for aircraft at St Mildred's Bay,
Westgate-on-Sea Westgate-on-Sea is a seaside town and civil parish on the north-east coast of Kent, England. It is within the Thanet local government district and borders the larger seaside resort of Margate. Its two sandy beaches have remained a popular touri ...
, on top of the chalk cliffs, at the foot of which was a promenade which had been used for
seaplane A seaplane is a powered fixed-wing aircraft capable of takeoff, taking off and water landing, landing (alighting) on water.Gunston, "The Cambridge Aerospace Dictionary", 2009. Seaplanes are usually divided into two categories based on their tec ...
operations. The landing grounds atop the cliff soon became the scene of several accidents, with one plane failing to stop before the end of the cliffs and tumbling into the sea, which, fortunately for the pilot, had been on its inward tide. In the winter of 1915–1916, early aircraft began to use the open farmlands between Minster and Manston as a site for emergency landings. The
Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...
Aerodrome at Manston was opened in response. A training school, originally set up to instruct pilots in the use of the new Handley Page Type O bombers, was soon established. By the close of 1916, there were already two units stationed at Manston: the Operational War Flight Command and the
Handley Page Handley Page Limited was a British aerospace manufacturer. Founded by Frederick Handley Page (later Sir Frederick) in 1909, it was the United Kingdom's first publicly traded aircraft manufacturing company. It went into voluntary liquidation a ...
Training School. Its location near the Kent coast gave Manston some advantages over other aerodromes, and regular additions in men and machinery were soon made, particularly from
RAF Detling Royal Air Force Detling or more simply RAF Detling is a former Royal Air Force station situated above sea level, located near Detling, a village about miles north-east of Maidstone, Kent. It was a station of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS ...
, in early days. By 1917 the
Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...
was well established and taking an active part in the defence of Britain.


Battle of Britain and the Second World War

Manston was used as a forward base by many squadrons 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 opposin ...
, owing to its location close to the front line. It was frequently attacked and heavily bombed during the
Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...
. Barnes Wallis used the base to test his
bouncing bomb A bouncing bomb is a bomb designed to bounce to a target across water in a calculated manner to avoid obstacles such as torpedo nets, and to allow both the bomb's speed on arrival at the target and the timing of its detonation to be pre-deter ...
on the coast at nearby
Reculver Reculver is a village and coastal resort about east of Herne Bay on the north coast of Kent in south-east England. It is in the ward of the same name, in the City of Canterbury district of Kent. Reculver once occupied a strategic location ...
, prior to the
Dambusters raid Operation Chastise or commonly known as the Dambusters Raid was an attack on German dams carried out on the night of 16/17 May 1943 by 617 Squadron RAF Bomber Command, later called the Dam Busters, using special "bouncing bombs" developed by ...
.
Hawker Typhoon The Hawker Typhoon is a British single-seat fighter-bomber, produced by Hawker Aircraft. It was intended to be a medium-high altitude interceptor, as a replacement for the Hawker Hurricane, but several design problems were encountered and i ...
and
Gloster Meteor The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies of World War II, Allies' only jet aircraft to engage in combat operations during the Second World War. The Meteor's development was heavily reliant on its ground-breaking turb ...
squadrons were based at Manston during the war. On 27 July 1944, RAF 616 Squadron became the first allied jet equipped squadron in the world to become operational, using Meteors to intercept German
V-1 flying bomb The V-1 flying bomb (german: Vergeltungswaffe 1 "Vengeance Weapon 1") was an early cruise missile. Its official Ministry of Aviation (Nazi Germany), Reich Aviation Ministry () designation was Fi 103. It was also known to the Allies as the buz ...
s aimed at
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. Manston's position close to the front line and its long and broad three lane runway (built during the war, along with the runways at Woodbridge and
Carnaby Carnaby is a family name which may refer to: People * Garth Carnaby (born 1950) New Zealand fibre physicist and science and public administrator * Ivan Carnaby (1908–1974), Australian ornithologist * Tom Carnaby (1913–1971), British footballer ...
near Bridlington) meant the airfield was heavily used by badly damaged planes that had suffered from ground fire, collisions, or air attack but retained a degree of
airworthiness In aviation, airworthiness is the measure of an aircraft's suitability for safe flight. Initial airworthiness is demonstrated by a certificate of airworthiness issued by the civil aviation authority in the state in which the aircraft is register ...
. The airfield became a "graveyard" for heavy bombers and less-damaged aircraft, offering spare parts for allied aircraft in need of repair. The museum on site displays some aerial views dating from this era and the post-war years.


Post-war military and civil use

During the
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
of the 1950s, the
United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
used Manston as a
Strategic Air Command Strategic Air Command (SAC) was both a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile ...
base for its fighter and fighter-bomber units. The USAF withdrew from Manston in 1960, and the airfield became a joint civilian and RAF airport, employed for occasional
package tour A package tour, package vacation, or package holiday comprises transport and accommodation advertised and sold together by a vendor known as a tour operator. Other services may be provided such as a rental car, activities or outings during the ...
and cargo flights, alongside its continuing role as an RAF base. Air Cadets used the northern side of the airfield as a gliding site, and an Air Experience Flight flying de Havilland Chipmunks was based there. Manston was used as a diversionary airfield for emergency military and civilian landings. Manston became Kent International Airport from 1989, and a new terminal was opened by
Sarah, Duchess of York Sarah, Duchess of York (born Sarah Margaret Ferguson; 15 October 1959), also known by the nickname Fergie, is a member of the British royal family. She is the former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, the younger brother of King Charles III ...
. Summer season charter flights operated by
Dan-Air Dan-Air (Dan Air Services Limited) was an airline based in the United Kingdom and a wholly owned subsidiary of London shipbroking firm Davies and Newman. It was started in 1953 with a single aircraft. Initially, it operated cargo and passenger ...
to Palma, Mallorca were introduced on Saturdays, using
BAC One-Eleven The BAC One-Eleven (or BAC-111/BAC 1-11) was an early jet airliner produced by the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC). Originally conceived by Hunting Aircraft as a 30-seat jet, before its merger into BAC in 1960, it was launched as an 80-se ...
s. The Yugoslavian carrier Aviogenex operated regular charters to the then-popular beach resorts of the then
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
on behalf of the now defunct
Yugotours Yugotours was, at one time, the UK's fourth-biggest tour operator and travel agent. History Early history The Yugoslavian carrier Aviogenex operated regular charters from the Manston (later Kent International Airport) to the then-popular beac ...
. Kent International Airport was initially a civilian area within the former RAF Manston that included the existing
terminal Terminal may refer to: Computing Hardware * Terminal (electronics), a device for joining electrical circuits together * Terminal (telecommunication), a device communicating over a line * Computer terminal, a set of primary input and output dev ...
building and an
apron An apron is a garment that is worn over other clothing to cover the front of the body. The word comes from old French ''napron'' meaning a small piece of cloth, however over time "a napron" became "an apron", through a linguistics process cal ...
where passengers embarked and freighters were loaded. The runway was not included within this enclave. In 1988, the owners of Kent International Airport signed a 125-year legal agreement with the RAF that obliged the RAF to maintain the runway, as well as to provide ongoing
air traffic control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airs ...
and fire & rescue services. The cost of providing these was estimated at up to £3m per annum by the Ministry of Defence.


Sale and commercial operations

After an absence of regular charter services, Aspro Holidays operated a series of summer charter services during the 1992–93 summer season with its in-house airline Inter European Airways to Palma, Mallorca and Larnaca, Cyprus using the Boeing 737, and added a service to Heraklion, Crete, which was often operated using its larger
Boeing 757 The Boeing 757 is an American narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the 727 (a trijet), received its first orders in August 1978. The prototype completed its mai ...
airliner. When Aspro was taken over by
Airtours MyTravel Group plc was a British, global travel group headquartered in Rochdale, England. It was founded in 1972 as Airtours Group. The group included two in-house airlines, MyTravel Airways UK and MyTravel Airways Scandinavia, and various t ...
, the flights ceased. The early 1990s also saw weekly flights to Larnaca, Cyprus by Cypriana Holidays, with
Eurocypria Eurocypria Airlines Limited was a charter airline with its head office in the Artemis Building in Larnaca, Cyprus, owned by the government of Cyprus, operating mostly chartered flights. Its main base was Larnaca International Airport, with a seco ...
operating the inbound flight via Norwich as a split load. The service continued for approximately two summer seasons before Cypriana went into administration. A 1993 report by the Department of Trade and Industry examined runway capacity in
south east England South East England is one of the nine official regions of England at the ITL 1 statistical regions of England, first level of International Territorial Level, ITL for Statistics, statistical purposes. It consists of the counties of england, ...
and found Manston unsuitable for development as a major airport because of its proximity to a town. Nevertheless, in 1998,
Thanet District Council Thanet may refer to: *Isle of Thanet, a former island, now a peninsula, at the most easterly point of Kent, England *Thanet District, a local government district containing the island *Thanet College, former name of East Kent College * Thanet Cana ...
produced the Isle of Thanet local plan, which recognised the economic development potential of abandoned sections of the old military airfield, particularly on its north-western edge. After the plan was published, the Ministry of Defence announced its intention to sell RAF Manston, and following a ruling by government instructing government departments to generate money through the sale of surplus assets, the MoD sold Manston. After the RAF left, local Labour MP
Stephen Ladyman Stephen John Ladyman (born 6 November 1952) is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Thanet from 1997 until 2010. Early life He attended the Birkenhead Institute Grammar School for Boys (became the ...
opposed the decision to sell the base to property developer Wiggins Group plc. The RAF faced a compensation claim of £50–100 million if it then closed the base and terminated its earlier agreement with Kent International Airport. The MoD sold the site at the end of March 1999 for £4.75m to the Wiggins Group, which inherited the legal agreement obliging the RAF to continue maintenance of the airfield. Within six months, the RAF announced that it was leaving the airfield. The airfield site comprises .


Expansion

In December 2003 a Government
White Paper A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue and presents the issuing body's philosophy on the matter. It is meant to help readers understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision. A white paper ...
on The Future of Air Transport stated that Manston "could play a valuable role in meeting local demand and could contribute to regional economic development", and would support development in principle, "subject to relevant environmental considerations". Development began in 2004 in an attempt to make it a
budget airline A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline (occasionally referred to as '' no-frills'', ''budget'' or '' discount carrier'' or ''airline'', and abbreviated as ''LCC'') is an airline that is operated with an especially high emphasis on minimizing op ...
hub. Irish airline
EUjet EUjet was a low-cost airline based at Shannon Airport, Ireland. It operated a network of services from its main base at Shannon Airport (SNN), with a hub at Kent International Airport (MSE), Manston, Kent, UK. The airline was sold to a Bri ...
, formed in 2002, began scheduled flights in September 2004 to UK destinations such as
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
,
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
, and international destinations
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
and
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
with a small fleet of
Fokker 100 The Fokker 100 is a regional jet produced by Fokker in the Netherlands. The Fokker 100 is based on the Fokker F28 with a fuselage stretched by to seat up to 109 passengers, up from 85. It is powered by two newer Rolls-Royce Tay turbofans, ...
airliner An airliner is a type of aircraft for transporting passengers and air cargo. Such aircraft are most often operated by airlines. Although the definition of an airliner can vary from country to country, an airliner is typically defined as an ...
s. New car parks and a direct coach service from Bluewater via
Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...
were introduced to support these flights. In May 2004, the airport operator PlaneStation bought 30% of the shares in EUjet, and in January 2005 it completed its takeover by acquiring the remaining 70%. On 26 July 2005, the airline went into administration and all EUjet flights ended, along with all non-freight operations at the airport, owing to financial difficulties with the airline and airport owner, PlaneStation. Its business plan was ambitious and when the bank lenders
foreclosed Foreclosure is a legal process in which a lender attempts to recover the balance of a loan from a borrower who has stopped making payments to the lender by forcing the sale of the asset used as the collateral for the loan. Formally, a mortg ...
many passengers were left stranded abroad. London Manston Airport plc went into liquidation. Operations then temporarily ceased, and Manston's aerodrome traffic zone and radar services were suspended, until after a new buyer could be found. The sale of Manston to
Infratil Infratil Limited is a New Zealand-based infrastructure investment company. It owns renewable energy, digital infrastructure, airports, and healthcare assets with operations in New Zealand, Australia, Asia, the US and Europe. Infratil was founded ...
, a company based in
Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...
, New Zealand and owner of
Glasgow Prestwick Airport Glasgow Prestwick Airport () is an international airport serving the west of Scotland, situated northeast of the town of Prestwick in South Ayrshire and southwest of Glasgow. It is the less busy of the two airports serving the western part of ...
, was completed on 26 August 2005. In July 2006 a charter route between Manston and
Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...
, was announced: it was cancelled prior to commencement because of low bookings. It was to be operated by tour operator Cosmos in conjunction with Monarch Airlines. Luxembourg-based
Cargolux Cargolux, legally ''Cargolux Airlines International S.A.'', is a Luxembourgian flag carrier cargo airline with its headquarters and hub at Luxembourg Airport. With a global network, it is one of the largest scheduled all-cargo airlines in Euro ...
started flying for
Ghana Airways Ghana Airways Limited was the flag carrier of Ghana, with its main base of operation and hub at Kotoka International Airport in Accra. The airline ceased operations in 2004, although plans were discussed to revive it in 2020 in partnership wit ...
from
Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...
to Kent International on 17 April 2007. Charter flights were operated from Manston by Seguro Travel Ltd, operating as Kent Escapes. The 2007 Kent Escapes flights were operated by Sky Wings using a
McDonnell Douglas MD-80 The McDonnell Douglas MD-80 is a series of five-abreast single-aisle airliners developed by McDonnell Douglas. It was produced by the developer company until August 1997 and then by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The MD-80 was the second gene ...
. Seguro then swapped operators on 16 August and flights were taken over by BMI for a period. At the end of the season, flights were operated by
Futura International Airways Futura International Airways was an airline with its head office in the ''Zona Facturación'' on the property of Palma de Mallorca Airport in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. It operated scheduled services and charter flights for tour operators and ot ...
, a Spanish-based airline, using the
Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton Factory in Washington (state), Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the Boeing 707, 7 ...
. Futura ceased trading during September 2008 and Seguro on 10 September 2008. On 15 February 2010, former airport CEO Matt Clarke and Flybe head of PR Niall Duffy announced a daily service operated by
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 ...
from Manston to Edinburgh,
Kirkwall Kirkwall ( sco, Kirkwaa, gd, Bàgh na h-Eaglaise, nrn, Kirkavå) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland. The name Kirkwall comes from the Norse name (''Church Bay''), which later changed to ''Kirkv ...
, and
Sumburgh Sumburgh is a small settlement in the Shetland Islands, Scotland. Sumburgh is located at the south end of the Mainland on Sumburgh Head. Sumburgh Airport is just outside the village to the north. Sumburgh has a population of approximately 100. Ja ...
,
Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
, and Manchester. The services were the first daily scheduled routes at Manston since the collapse of EUjet in 2005. Dash-8Q400 aircraft were used. Air Southwest announced seasonal charter services to
Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...
every Saturday using Dash-8 aircraft. The Flybe services to Kirkwall and Sumburgh were operated by the once-daily flight to
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
and then by
Loganair Loganair is a Scottish regional airline based at Glasgow Airport near Paisley, Scotland. It is the largest regional airline in the UK by passenger numbers and fleet size. In addition to its main base at Glasgow, it has hubs at Aberdeen, Edinb ...
to the onward destinations. Departures were offered during summer 2011 to Funchal, Madeira with specialist operator Atlantic Holidays, operated by UK charter airline Monarch Airlines but then discontinued. Newmarket Holidays continued to offer irregular charter flights during the summer months to Verona and Naples in Italy, as well as Porto in Portugal using the Lithuanian charter airline
Small Planet Airlines Small Planet Airlines was a Lithuanian leisure airline based at Vilnius Airport with further bases throughout Europe. It was the subsidiary of the Small Planet Group which also owned sister companies in Cambodia, Germany, Italy, and Poland, all ...
for the summer 2013 season.
Iran Air The National Airline of Iran ( fa, هواپیمايی ملی ایران, Havâpeymâyi-ye Melli-ye Irân), branded as Iran Air, is the flag carrier of Iran, which is headquartered at Mehrabad Airport in Tehran. As of 2018, it operates scheduled ...
used Manston as a fuel stop for flight 710 from Heathrow to
Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...
due to fuel disputes in London, until 1 December 2011.


Decline

On 22 December 2011, Flybe spokesman Niall Duffy announced that all Flybe services would cease from Manston Airport by 25 March 2012. On 8 March 2012, Infratil announced it would dispose of its European airport operations, placing Kent International and Glasgow-Prestwick airports up for sale. Manston and Prestwick had been running at a loss, and in May 2011 Infratil's annual report showed that losses from its European airports grew from £9 million to £11 million in 2010. On 31 July 2012 a pressure group Why Not Manston? was formed, aiming to support greater use of Manston airport. On 14 November 2012, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines announced twice daily flights from Manston to
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
, with onward connections via the KLM network. The first flight was with a Fokker 70 on 2 April 2013. From July 2013,
British Airways British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a populati ...
has operated test flights and crew training for the
Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the project was annou ...
from Manston, which was followed by a similar exercise for the
Boeing 787 Dreamliner The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is an American wide-body jet airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After dropping its unconventional Sonic Cruiser project, Boeing announced the conventional 7E7 on January 29, 2003, ...
aircraft. On 15 October 2013, Infratil announced it would sell the airport to a company wholly owned by
Ann Gloag Dame Ann Heron Gloag DBE (née Souter; born 10 December 1942) is a Scottish billionaire businesswoman, activist, and charity campaigner. She is co-founder of the international transport company Stagecoach Group. According to The ''Sunday Times ...
, co-founder of Stagecoach Group. Manston Skyport Ltd took over running the former airport on 29 November 2013.


Closure

On 19 March 2014, it was announced that a 45-day consultation period into the closure of the former airport had begun. Daily losses were said to be £10,000. The airport's chief executive announced that the airport could close on 9 April 2014, and on 25 March 2014 KLM Royal Dutch Airlines announced the end of its flights to Amsterdam by 10 April, and Manston's last scheduled flight departed for Amsterdam on 9 April 2014. On 12 April 2014, Newmarket Holidays said its
Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Northern Italy, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and the ...
and
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 ...
seasonal charter flights would move to the expanding
Lydd Airport London Ashford Airport is east of the town of Lydd and south of Ashford in the district of Folkestone and Hythe, in Kent, England. Originally named Lydd Ferryfield, it is now also known as London Ashford Airport, despite being from Lond ...
. The closure of the former airport was announced on 6 May 2014; this took place on 15 May 2014.


Lorry park

On 31 July 2015, it was announced that the site might be used to house overflow lorries from
Operation Stack Operation Stack is a procedure used by Kent Police and the Port of Dover in England to park (or "stack") lorries on the M20 motorway in Kent when services across the English Channel, such as those through the Channel Tunnel or from the Port o ...
, an emergency procedure to be used when services across the English Channel, such as those through the Channel Tunnel or from the Port of Dover, were disrupted. To prevent lorries from parking on the motorway during busy periods, freight traffic bound for the Port of Dover might be diverted to the airfield and held until it can be directed to the ferry services. On 26 October 2016, local newspaper the ''Thanet Extra'' reported that the owners of the site had received payments totalling £3.539 million from the
Department for Transport The Department for Transport (DfT) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have not been devolved. The d ...
to keep Manston Airport on standby as a lorry park for Operation Stack. Manston was switched to
Operation Brock Operation Brock is the traffic management system in Kent, England, used to supplement Operation Stack during cross-Channel traffic problems. It was originally developed for use in the event of a no-deal Brexit and the name is derived from ''Brex ...
, a plan for the event of a
no-deal Brexit A no-deal Brexit (also called clean break BrexitBBC. (2019)''Brexit: Jargon-busting guide to the key terms'' (BBC) Retrieved 29 March 2019.) was the potential withdrawal of the UK from the European Union (EU) without a withdrawa ...
, when it superseded Operation Stack in 2019. In December 2020, the airport runway was used as a lorry park when the French border was closed to traffic from the UK due to a new strain of coronavirus being found there.


Future

In July 2019, it was announced the airport may restart operations by 2022, its new owner RiverOak Strategic Partners (RSP) had revealed. RSP, a London-based company incorporated in 2016 specifically to reopen the Kent County airport, told the BBC it planned "short-haul and cargo flights" at the site. The company confirmed in a statement dated 3 July that it would purchase the airport from the then owners Stone Hill Park (SHP), which had originally planned to develop the area into housing, a business park, a country park, and sports village. In August 2022 RSP announced that it had received the redetermined Development Consent Order, from the Department for Transport. Following proposed investment of £500 million it expected to restart flights in early 2025.


Redevelopment proposals

Following closure, a campaign was launched to reopen the airport, although the airport's owner stated its intention to redevelop the site. In 2014, an American private equity group, RiverOak Investments, put forward a proposal to acquire the site and reopen it as an airport, with an initial emphasis on cargo and the recycling of aircraft. This would have required the local council to use a
compulsory purchase order A compulsory purchase order (CPO; , ) is a legal function in the United Kingdom and Ireland that allows certain bodies to obtain land or property without the consent of the owner. It may be enforced if a proposed development is considered one for p ...
(CPO), with RiverOak as indemnity partner, covering the costs incurred. In a council cabinet meeting on 11 December 2014, the
Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...
-controlled cabinet decided not to proceed with a CPO at the present time, stating RiverOak being the only candidate in the initial soft market testing, no further action was to be taken on the CPO until other suitable candidates had been sought through a further round of soft market testing. After a change in the control of the local council in the 2015 elections, the newly elected council decided to again look at using a CPO to re-open the former airport. Subsequent to the DofT report commissioned from PwC, into the decision not to proceed, a second examination of RiverOak took place, following the suggestions made by PwC. RiverOak failed to provide the information required by the council to proceed with a CPO, leading TDC to decline to proceed with a CPO using RiverOak as indemnity partner for a second time. In December 2015, it was announced that RiverOak would undertake
Development Consent Order
(DCO) process to acquire permission from central government to reopen the airport. A pre-application enquiry was made to the Planning Inspectorate in January 2016. In June 2016, the site owner submitted a planning application to Thanet District Council, seeking permission for 2,500 homes, commercial sectors and public parkland, under the name Stone Hill Park. The Planning Inspectorate launched an inquiry into the proposed change of use of buildings on the site from aviation to non-aviation in July 2016. In August 2016, Thanet Council commissioned AviaSolutions, an aviation consulting firm, to conduct a study into the feasibility of the site reopening as an airport. During August 2016, the developers of the proposed Stone Hill Park criticised RiverOak, stating a belief that the company would develop Manston into a "24/7 industrial scale cargo hub". This view was supported by a campaign group, No Night Flights, which also warned of daily and nightly flights to and from the airport. RiverOak subsequently made public a media statement discussing inaccuracies in the allegations by No Night Flights. AviaSolutions released its findings in October 2016, stating that it did not believe an airport would be successful in the long-term on the site. RiverOak Strategic Partners responds to the Avia report saying that "basic factual errors and questionable methodology, together with a decision to ignore six respected and publicly available air freight studies, has led to a set of conclusions about Manston Airport that are unsafe for Thanet Council to rely on and therefore render the report unusable." In November 2016, it was made public that Edi Truell, a leading city financier and previously the pensions and investments adviser to the then Mayor of London,
Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...
, was keen to acquire Manston and return it to an operational airport. That month, the date for the public inquiry was announced as 24 January 2017 after the previous meeting due 1 November 2016 was postponed. In February 2017, it became public that Disruptive Capital, with Edi Truell as chairman was to commission a report on its plans for Manston Airport. After a response to the news by Stone Hill Park, Edi Truell made public his team's investment in 14 airports around the world and $68 billion of long-term infrastructure investments. On 7 February 2017, RiverOak Strategic Partners spent its first day on site after gaining access to Manston Airport to carry out work as part of their development consent order (DCO). On 2 May 2017, it was announced that a new potential aviation investor was intending to approach Thanet District Council regarding a compulsory purchase order. Dale Crawford of DTD Consult is acting as spokesperson for the investment group, said to be a US logistics company with roots in Europe which already has plans to base 12 of its clients' aircraft at the site and able to invest over £100 million. In July 2017 the Planning Inspectorate announced that, following its inquiry, it had thrown out the four applications for change of use of the Manston site to non-aviation uses. In June and July 2017, almost 2,000 people attend statutory consultation meetings for RiverOak Strategic Partners' (RSP's) proposals for Manston Airport. A further round of statutory consultation events is held in January and February 2018 The Development Consent Order examination stage closed on 9 July 2019 and permission was given for the sale to go ahead. The Development Consent Order was granted by the Transport Secretary in July 2020 but quashed by the High Court in February 2021 due to insufficient explanation of reasons to go against a 2019 examining authority report. In August 2022, the minister once again approved the DCO to bring the airfield back into use, saying he "does not agree with the way in which the Examining Authority has attempted to establish whether there is a need for the Development". Separately, a spokesman from RSP stressed their aim was to build an airport which was net zero-carbon from the start, and that because of the great shortage of air-freight capacity locally, considering mixed mode operations as a whole, cargo flights to/from the airport would actually reduce CO₂ emissions -- they claimed that most goods to/from SE England were trucked to French (and other nearby) airports for onward air freight. They said that once a plane was at its cruising altitude, it used less fuel than a set of trucks bearing the same goods by road, so if an item has to travel by air for some part of the journey, it is good to choose airports which minimise trucking distances.


Airline operations

At the time of closure, (April 2014), there were various cargo services and one passenger service (
KLM KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, legally ''Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V.'' (literal translation: Royal Aviation Company Plc.), is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands. KLM is headquartered in Amstelveen, with its hub at nearby Amste ...
to
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
) operating from Manston. Cargo flights before closure were operated by
Cargolux Cargolux, legally ''Cargolux Airlines International S.A.'', is a Luxembourgian flag carrier cargo airline with its headquarters and hub at Luxembourg Airport. With a global network, it is one of the largest scheduled all-cargo airlines in Euro ...
to Johannesburg–OR Tambo,
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
,
Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...
and Nairobi–Jomo Kenyatta; and by Saudia Cargo to
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
, Dammam,
Jeddah Jeddah ( ), also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; ar, , Jidda, ), is a city in the Hejaz region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the country's commercial center. Established in the 6th century BC as a fishing village, Jeddah's pro ...
, Johannesburg–OR Tambo and Nairobi–Jomo Kenyatta.


Non-passenger operations

Two museums, the
RAF Manston Royal Air Force Manston or more simply RAF Manston is a former Royal Air Force station located in the north-east of Kent, at on the Isle of Thanet from 1916 until 1996. The site was split between a commercial airport Kent International Airpo ...
History Museum and the
Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Grif ...
and
Hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...
memorial, are located on the northern edge of the airfield. The large hangar was originally built and used by
Invicta International Airlines Invicta International Airlines Ltd was a charter airline based at Manston Airport in the United Kingdom. It operated non-scheduled passenger and freight services between 1965 and 1982. Company history 1960s Invicta International Airlines was fo ...
; between 1987 and 2004 Modern Jet Support Centre Ltd used it for Boeing 707 and
McDonnell Douglas DC-10 The McDonnell Douglas DC-10 is an American trijet wide-body aircraft manufactured by McDonnell Douglas. The DC-10 was intended to succeed the DC-8 for long- range flights. It first flew on August 29, 1970; it was introduced on August 5, 197 ...
servicing, before entering administration; between 2006 and early 2009 it was used by airline
DAS Air Cargo DAS Air Cargo was a Ugandan cargo airline based at Entebbe as Dairoo Air Services. It operated all-cargo services between Europe and 20 cities throughout Africa, the Middle East and the Far East. Entebbe was a major hub for business in east and s ...
(which was taken over by Continental Aviation Services in November 2007) to maintain its aircraft as well as those of
World Airways World Airways, Inc. was a United States airline headquartered in Peachtree City, Georgia in Greater Atlanta. The company operated mostly non-scheduled services but did fly scheduled passenger services as well, notably with McDonnell Douglas DC ...
,
Omni Air International Omni Air International, LLC. is a United States charter airline headquartered in Hangar 19 on the grounds of Tulsa International Airport in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States. It specializes in passenger charter flights, and Aircraft Crew Maintenan ...
,
Gemini Air Cargo Gemini Air Cargo was an American ACMI (Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, & Insurance) cargo airline headquartered in Dulles, Virginia, United States. It operated worldwide cargo schedules and charters on a wet-lease basis. Its main bases were Miami ...
, and
Avient Aviation Avient Aviation was an international cargo airline with its head office in Harare, Zimbabwe and its commercial center in the United Kingdom. The company was established in 1993 and offered scheduled and chartered flights to Africa, South Amer ...
, before entering administration. AvMan Engineering Ltd took over the hangar in 2009, and has CAA approval to work on
BAe-146 The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Manufacture by Avro International ...
and their ALF502 / LF507 engines. A helicopter business remains operational, located immediately outside of the airport curtilage. A second helicopter business, Polar helicopters, remains operational on the airfield and provides a radio service for overflying aircraft.


Search and rescue base

RAF Manston was home to a helicopter search and rescue (SAR) flight from
No. 22 Squadron RAF Number 22 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is an operational testing and evaluation squadron for all the Joint Helicopter Command helicopter types including Chinook, Puma HC2, Merlin HC4, Apache and Wildcat AH1. Formerly the Rotary Wing Op ...
from 1961, operating Westland Whirlwind HAR.2/HAR.10 aircraft. The flight was withdrawn in 1969, but an outcry led to the RAF contracting Bristow Helicopters from 1971 to 1974 to provide a continuing service (using Whirlwind Series 3s). In 1972, the Bristow crew was awarded the Wreck Shield for Most Meritorious Rescue in 1972 by the Department of Trade and Industry. The RAF returned in 1974, with
No. 72 Squadron RAF Number 72 (Fighter) Squadron of the Royal Air Force is a training squadron that is currently based at RAF Valley using the Beechcraft Texan T.1 to deliver Basic Fast Jet Training (BFJT). It was previously based at RAF Linton-on-Ouse using th ...
operating two Westland Wessex HC.2 aircraft to replace the Bristow operation. The flight was transferred back to No. 22 Squadron in June 1976. In 1988 No. 202 Squadron RAF moved to Manston with its Westland Sea King HAR.3, when the Wessex helicopters moved to
RAF Coltishall Royal Air Force Coltishall, more commonly known as RAF Coltishall , is a former Royal Air Force station located North-North-East of Norwich, in the English county of Norfolk, East Anglia, which operated from 1938 to 2006. It was a fighter airf ...
. The Sea Kings remained at Manston until July 1994, when the SAR base closed, transferring SAR
English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...
coverage to
RAF Wattisham Royal Air Force Station Wattisham or more simply RAF Wattisham is a former Royal Air Force station located in East Anglia just outside the village of Wattisham, south of Stowmarket in Suffolk, England. During the Cold War it was a major front ...
. It was announced that Manston would be a location for the new 10-year SAR contract, operated by Bristow Helicopters on behalf of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. Manston was intended to have a new £7 million, custom built facility operational from April 2015, hosting two new AgustaWestland AW189 helicopters. These plans were cancelled after the airport's closure was announced


Constraints

Manston's flight path passed over the town of
Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...
, a
seaside resort A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, such as in the Germ ...
of some 40,000 residents, situated about from the eastern end of the runway. To one side of the runway lies the village of
Cliffsend Cliffsend is a village (sometimes written, correctly, as Cliffs End) and civil parish situated almost west of Ramsgate, Kent, United Kingdom, in the Thanet local government district. Hengist and Horsa landed near here in 410AD, and St Augusti ...
, whose housing is less than from it. Manston village stands to the northeast of the passenger terminal.


Accidents and incidents

On 11 August 2010 a Douglas DC-8-63F YA-VIC of Afghanistan's
Kam Air Kam Air is the largest private Afghan airline. Founded in 2003, Kam Air has twelve aircraft and a workforce of over 1,200 people, operating scheduled domestic passenger services throughout Afghanistan and international services to destinations i ...
suffered a
tailstrike In aviation, a tailstrike or tail strike occurs when the tail or empennage of an aircraft strikes the ground or other stationary object. This can happen with a fixed-wing aircraft with tricycle undercarriage, in both takeoff where the pilot rot ...
on take-off, destroying an approach light. The aircraft was operating an international cargo flight from Manston to
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
via the
Cape Verde Islands , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...
. The incident was caused by excess fuel, and an underestimation of the mass of the cargo, making the aircraft overweight. After being informed of the tailstrike, the crew continued the flight to the Cape Verde Islands. Inspection on arrival revealed that a tailstrike had indeed occurred, although the tailstrike indicator was within limits. The incident was investigated by the
Air Accidents Investigation Branch The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) investigates civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents within the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and crown dependencies. It is also the Space Accident Investigation Authority (SAIA ...
, which made four safety recommendations. As a direct result, Kam Air was banned from operating within the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
. The three crew were dismissed, and Kam Air announced that it would withdraw its two DC-8s from service.


See also

*
Defence Fire Training and Development Centre The Defence Fire Training and Development Centre (DFTDC, formerly FSCTE Manston) was the site of the Ministry of Defence's firefighter training. It occupied part of a former Royal Air Force base near the village of Manston in the southeast corner ...
*
List of Royal Air Force stations The Royal Air Force (RAF) operates several stations throughout the United Kingdom and overseas. This includes front-line and training air bases, support, administrative and training stations with no flying activity, unmanned airfields used fo ...
*
United States Air Force in the United Kingdom Since 1942 the United States has maintained air bases in the United Kingdom. Major Commands of the USAF having bases in the United Kingdom were the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE), Strategic Air Command (SAC), and Air Mobility Command ...
*
United States Air Forces in Europe United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...


References


External links


RAF Manston Spitfire and Hurricane Memorial Museum

RAF Manston History Museum

History of Manston Airfield
{{Airports in the United Kingdom Airports in Kent Transport in Kent Defunct airports in England Airports disestablished in 2014 2014 disestablishments in England