Dr Sally Dixon Consultant, Azimuth Associates
The introduction of new propulsion systems using hydrogen and battery power, the use of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), particularly Remotely Piloted Cargo Aircraft (RPCAs), and the employment of digital twins, automation, AI and digitalisation, including digital booking platforms, are radically changing the way we will soon be operating.
These necessary but disruptive innovations require considerable changes to existing infrastructure. The concern is that planning and regulatory delays could hinder progress, potentially resulting in the UK falling behind other countries. For Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs), including major airport developments, the Development Consent Order (DCO) process switched planning decision responsibility from the local authority to central government.
For aviation projects, the Secretary of State for Transport is in a quasi-legal position as the person making the DCO decision. As such, he is unable to say whether the government are in support of a development or not, in order to remain impartial. This is hopeless for investors, who have no idea whether their project meets with government approval or not, until the decision – many, many months or years after starting the process – is made.
The situation is compounded by the lack of an up-to-date Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS). Whilst we have the Making Best Use (MBU) policy, investors are perplexed about which airport developments, if any, the UK government will support. This confusion increases the time and cost to get through the DCO process, with the additional and very real threat of judicial reviews and appeals. In a competitive, privatised market, the government’s hands are tied. They cannot do more than make planning easy or difficult, and at the moment it feels difficult - very difficult.
Manston is the first airport through the DCO process, with DCO permission granted on 18 August 2022. On 22 September 2023, Mr Justice Dove handed down his judgement on the Judicial Review of the government’s decision to grant the Manston DCO (see case study below). There is now a submission to the Court of Appeal, which will be the end of a procedure that commenced in 2016, when the airport was accepted as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP).
Luton and Gatwick now follow in the DCO process, and there may be other airports considering an application. Maybe lessons have been learnt but maybe not. A third runway at Heathrow, around which the ANPS orbits, may never garner sufficient political support over a long enough timeframe to get started any time soon.
The Prime Minister’s push back on decarbonisation rather than pushing forward with policies and funding may further serve to hold up private sector investment. Without clear government policy, airport infrastructure development is both high risk and high cost. Local councils, with much less control over major projects than they had before the NSIP process was introduced, may decide to fight central government decisions.
Whilst the big decisions get made by central government, and the Courts if challenged, local authorities could still opt to use delay tactics over the relatively minor but important issues under their control. For example, we are banking on hydrogen to get us to net zero in aviation and across the energy sector. Legislation for Carbon Budget 6 came in mid 2021 and was the first to be set under the UK's new net zero target. It suggests hydrogen will account for up to 35 per cent of the UK’s energy consumption by 2050. However, if planning does not support construction of hydrogen production plants, the UK will be unable to progress with radical opportunities to decarbonise both on the ground and in the air.
RPCA services will be perhaps one of the century’s greatest achievements. These flights will be clean, largely powered by electric or hydrogen-electric propulsion systems. They will require a whole new set of skills to design, engineer, fly, load, and maintain. It is likely to be less costly to qualify to fly a remotely piloted cargo aircraft than to be an onboard pilot. This could be a huge encouragement to young people from disadvantaged and non-typical pilot backgrounds, serving to increase diversity in the sector.
The UK government’s ambition is to rank in the top three in the world in AAM, although it is not clear how this will be measured. Whilst drone technology is advancing rapidly, regulation is not keeping up the pace. It is therefore hard to imagine how the UK will take any meaningful lead in the future of flight unless we can move forward quickly but without compromising safety.
Notwithstanding challenges such as insurance and liability problems, safe and clean propulsion, and the skilled workforce required, one of the issues will be how the sector introduces and integrates RPCA transport. Smaller loads, potentially travelling direct from the manufacturer to the consumer or final buyer, may allow businesses to cut out the middleman – removing the freight forwarder for example – from the supply chain, radically disrupting distribution channels.
The question is whether manufacturers will want to take on this role and become early adopters or whether freight forwarders and integrators will move first to intercept such action, adding the use of RPCAs to their portfolio of transport options. Whichever way this pans out, all our attention should be on how the UK exploits and employs technologies and practices to ensure we meet the challenges the world and this post-Brexit country are facing.
Aviation is essential – of that there can be no doubt. We have only to look at the situation in Ukraine, where commercial air traffic ceased in February 2022 as the country suffered significant war-inflicted destruction. Rebuilding Ukraine’s infrastructure, including its airports and cargo facilities, will be a colossal task, but will, hopefully soon, present fantastic opportunities.
As a country, Ukraine can leapfrog others, ensuring sustainability and the latest technologies are designed in from the start. All the progress we are making in aviation can be harnessed to help heal the damage inflicted on the psyche of the people involved and repair the economic damage sustained. Won't it be joyous when they can start!
Unlocking prosperity at Manston Airport
Steeped in a century of aviation history, Manston Airport in Kent is on the brink of a remarkable comeback with plans for £500 million redevelopment to create the South East's first air cargo hub. From its World War II role to recent legal challenges, this airport's revival could reshape Kent and the South East.
Manston Airport, located near the port town of Ramsgate, has a rich history dating back to its opening in 1916. Originally equipped with a single grass runway, it played a vital role during World War II when damaged aircraft limped across the English Channel to make emergency landings at Manston. Unfortunately, many pilots lost their lives due to the limited capacity of the grass runway, which couldn't be cleared quickly enough between landings. To prevent such tragedies in the future, a new, wider, hard runway was constructed, designed as three adjoining runways. This innovative design allowed damaged aircraft to land on different sections of the runway, improving safety during emergencies.
Today, the airport boasts a 60-metre wide runway, providing additional safety margin in challenging weather conditions or during technical issues. Manston Airport covers nearly 800 acres, offering ample space for development. Its history is marked by various ownership changes and operational interruptions. The Ministry of Defence sold the airport in 1998, and it continued commercial operations until its closure in 2014, ostensibly for housing development. Subsequently, RiverOak Strategic Partners (RSP) began negotiations to purchase the airport, initially through a compulsory purchase attempt and later through an amicable sale process.
The legal journey for the airport’s Development Consent Order (DCO) has been complex, with initial approval granted in July 2020 but then quashed in February 2021 following a judicial review. The DCO was reissued in August 2021 and a second judicial review, which was lodged towards the end of 2022 and heard in the High Court in July 2023, resulted in a dismissal by Mr. Justice Dove in September 2023. The claimant has now made a submission to the Court of Appeal.
In the meantime, the airport's masterplan, last updated in 2017, will be revised to incorporate advancements in the aviation sector, reflecting future flight and ground operation innovations. The current masterplan envisions Manston Airport as a versatile hub, with 19 wide-body cargo aircraft parking stands, four narrow-body passenger aircraft parking stands, a sizable cargo terminal, extensive non-aircraft pavement, aircraft pavement, landside development, and business aviation hangars.
Parallel to the DCO process, Manston has been progressing through two critical procedures mandated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA): regaining aerodrome licensing and implementing airspace changes. The airport has reached Stage 3 of the airspace change process, aligning with the Airspace Modernisation Strategy and the UK Masterplan.
The redevelopment of Manston aims to create the South East's first air cargo hub, committed to achieving net-zero emissions in both its buildings and ground operations. It also supports clean aviation in the air. The airport's multimodal potential encompasses runway, road, rail, river, and remotely piloted cargo aircraft, offering a comprehensive range of transport options. The prospect of hydrogen utilisation and on-site production to support clean connectivity is under consideration. Exploring connections via the River Thames to London, utilising the Port of Ramsgate for eco-friendly transport of goods, presents exciting possibilities for ecommerce and perishable cargo transport. Additionally, the use of heavy-lift cargo drones could revolutionise rapid and clean transportation of essential goods, reducing reliance on traditional trucking methods and minimising the burden on local roads.
Manston's advantage lies in its ability to incorporate the latest technologies and innovations during redevelopment without the constraints of legacy infrastructure. This will not only help the airport achieve its net-zero goals but also contribute to research, data gathering, and technology transfer across various sectors, particularly logistics and transport.
The reopening of Manston as a cargo hub holds immense potential for economic transformation, especially in the deprived areas of Thanet and East Kent. High unemployment rates in these regions, particularly among young people, underscore the importance of creating jobs and opportunities. To address this challenge, the Manston Skills & Employment (MSE) Board was established in 2019, comprising representatives from various institutions and businesses. The MSE Board is dedicated to supporting local education, training, apprenticeships, career guidance, aspiration building, and local recruitment and procurement.
As a consultant with Azimuth Associates, I have worked closely with RSP for nearly eight years, witnessing the airport's complex journey. Despite the procedural delays in obtaining the DCO, my conviction remains steadfast that reopening Manston Airport is the right path. I am acutely aware of the responsibility I carry and am grateful for the generous support from the wider freight industry.