Doncaster Council has provided an update on the situation at the city’s airport, amid an ongoing six-week consultation on operations at Doncaster Sheffield (DSA).
As reported last month, the airport has been hit in recent years by the demise of Flybe, and the cutting of many of Wizz Air’s routes to and from DSA.
Owner Peel Group said at the time that the airport “may no longer be commercially viable” – news which has elicited a large number of comments from our readers.
A joint statement released on Friday by Doncaster Council Mayor Ros Jones and South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority Mayor Oliver Coppard said that the Peel Group had confirmed in meetings with senior officers that it would “look at all options to keep the airport open”.
The statement said that the group “would be willing to consider a range of options that could result in the maintenance of aviation operations on the site”, adding that “There is a mutual recognition that the airport and wider Gateway East site are inextricably linked, and all viable options are still on the table for discussion, including the sale to another owner/operator”.
Doncaster Council said that options will now be further investigated, although it warned that the current “extremely tight” six-week consultation period set by Peel Group may need to be extended.
“The urgency of this work cannot be underestimated and will be conducted at pace and commitment by Doncaster Council and the SYMCA,” said the statement.
“We have mobilised a number of groups including a business advisory board and our region’s MPs. We are now working closely with the Department for Transport and have jointly commissioned an economic impact assessment alongside our private sector partners to inform the best possible outcome for Doncaster Sheffield Airport, Doncaster and South Yorkshire. The region is also working with Government as we look for support with this nationally significant airport.”
Doncaster Sheffield airport opened in 2005 and has previously targeted as many as 25 million annual passengers, although traffic figures have so far peaked at 1.4 million in pre-pandemic 2019.
DSA’s busiest routes that year were Bucharest, Katowice, Gdansk, Alicante and Warsaw.
