Doncaster airport set to soar again after council launches rescue 16 months after closure

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The former (*16*)Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA) might stage a exceptional return to energetic aviation after the native council signed a lease with the positioning’s proprietor, Peel Group.

The announcement got here 16 months after the South Yorkshire airport noticed its final departure. The facility occupies the positioning of a former air power base, RAF Finningley. It is six miles from Doncaster and 19 miles from Sheffield.

The proprietor, Peel Group, mentioned on the time of the closure: “No tangible proposals have been received regarding the ownership of the airport or which address the fundamental lack of financial viability.”

In the autumn of 2022, the then-prime minister Liz Truss vowed to “protect this airport and this infrastructure” however took no precise steps to put it aside.

Now, although, the mayor of Doncaster, Labour’s Ros Jones, has signed a deal for the native council to take over the airport.

Ms Jones posted on X: “Today I can announce that we have signed a 125-year lease for the former DSA which will help to ensure the future of the airport site with the ambition to see planes flying once more from Doncaster.”

The mayor later mentioned: “This is a major step in the reopening process. The next is appointing an operator and investor who will manage and develop the airport.

“This process is well under way and I am optimistic that I can announce a partnership later in the spring.”

It is just not clear which airport operator is perhaps fascinated with operating DSA. Manchester Airports Group, which owns Stansted and East Midlands in addition to Manchester, is unlikely to develop into concerned in a venture that might dilute its current enterprise.

If and when the airport opens, Doncaster Sheffield might have a brand new identify. When first opened to passengers in 2005, it was often called Robin Hood airport.

The aviation schedule analyst, Sean Moulton, mentioned the brand new operator would discover it “tough” to convey airways right into a revived Doncaster Sheffield airport and to make it worthwhile.

“It wasn’t successful under previous ownership, and with airlines appearing to consolidate at larger airports, it’ll be a challenge.”

Doncaster Sheffield has 4 competing airports inside an hour’s drive. It is 28 miles from Humberside, 38 miles from Leeds Bradford, 46 miles from East Midlands and 53 miles from Manchester.