Gloucestershire Airport to close runway for business park

Gloucestershire Airport is based at Staverton, between Gloucester and Cheltenham

An airport is to close one of its three runways in order make way for a new business park.

Gloucestershire Airport's £15m plans have been granted approval by Tewkesbury Borough Council.

It plans to build a new business park, called the Cheltenham Gloucester Exchange, as well as a new access road.

The decision requires final sign-off by the secretary of state due to its potential impact on the surrounding countryside.

Size compromise

Some of the businesses based in the airport had objected to the application, claiming if it went ahead then it would "impact operations and safety".

Gloucestershire Airport previously said it was in discussions with those who objected, and reduced the size of the site as a compromise but some remain opposed to the plans, according to the BBC's Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Objector Darren Lewington said the reduction in space available would "directly affect" operators.

"While a new business park may be a catalyst for new jobs, it could well be at the expense of higher value technical jobs associated with flying operations at a time when aviation has been severely affected by covid and needs more support than ever before," he said.

Runway repair fund

Oliver Rider, speaking on behalf of Gloucestershire Airport, said the "majority of tenants are in support of the application".

"It will create around 1,500 new jobs and attract high profile businesses to the borough which require an airport location.

"It will fund the repair of the main runway, which is critical to the airport's continued operation," he added.

Gloucester City and Cheltenham Borough councils, which jointly own the airport as an arms-length company, agreed to pay £7.5m each for runway works in December.