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last mo.

Gatwick Awaits October Nod as Business Rates, Transport Targets Loom

Approval would deliver a ready-to-build second runway poised to add 100,000 flights annually, boosting Gatwick’s economic impact.

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Gatwick Airport’s chief executive Stewart Wingate on the northern runway, which he wants to bring into routine use

Overview

  • Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander must decide by October 27 on Gatwick’s amended development consent order to convert its northern relief strip into a routine second runway.
  • The privately financed £2.2bn plan would add about 100,000 flights a year and has been tweaked to address noise mitigation and modal-share requirements.
  • Gatwick’s outgoing CEO, Stewart Wingate, said he remains optimistic about approval and will hand over to Pierre-Hugues Schmit on September 1.
  • Executives warn that a pending business-rates revaluation could boost Gatwick’s annual bill from £39 million to as much as £240 million, potentially undermining the project’s investibility.
  • Delivering a 54% public-transport modal share relies on Department for Transport intervention in rail timetabling and pricing, a condition tied to approval.