Doncaster Sheffield Airport: Timescale to find investor for closed site extended

The South Yorkshire airport, which was previously run by Peel Group, closed in November 2022

The timescale to find an investor to help re-open Doncaster Sheffield Airport has been extended, the Mayor of Doncaster Ros Jones has said.

A decision had been expected in the spring but Ms Jones said nothing would now happen until summer, after requests from candidates for more time.

The airport closed in 2022 with owners Peel Group citing high costs.

Doncaster Council has been searching for an operator and investor to run the site since securing a 125-year lease.

In recent months the council has been carrying out minor maintenance works at the airport and giving tours to potential investors, with several inquiries already received according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Work is also ongoing to re-establish the site's controlled airspace, to allow for air traffic control to take place once again.

Addressing a full council meeting on Friday, Ms Jones said: "My number one priority is to re-open our airport, delivering jobs, opportunities and global connectivity to Doncaster and South Yorkshire.

"The lease has been signed and the procurement of an operator is in the final stages and due to complete in the summer."

How did we get here?

• Doubts started around the future of the airport in July 2022 after directors said it "may no longer be commercially viable"

• The airport closed in November 2022, with owners Peel Group citing high costs

• The following month, an application for a judicial review into the closure was refused by a court

• In June 2023, South Yorkshire mayor Oliver Coppard agreed to help fund a council bid to reopen the site

• Doncaster Council voted to support the reopening in September 2023 after a report said it was "financially viable"

• Plans for an outline business case moved forward in February

• Doncaster council agrees the signing of a new 125-year lease to ensure the future of the site.

In a joint statement from Ms Jones and the town's MPs - Rosie Winterton, Nick Fletcher and Ed Miliband - they said the progress made so far could not be "underestimated".

It said: "We all fully support the efforts of City of Doncaster Council to save and re-open our airport.

"We understand that there are still a number of stages before aeroplanes can once again fly from our airport, but the progress made so far cannot be underestimated.

"We will ensure cross-party lobbying of the Department for Transport and the Civil Aviation Authority in order to fully re-establish our airspace at the earliest opportunity.

"A reopened airport for Doncaster has incredible potential for Doncaster and South Yorkshire."