New runway for Luton ruled out

A full-length runway at Luton would increase capacity to 30 million

Luton Airport is not to have a second runway.

The Bedfordshire airport was ruled out for major expansion by Transport Secretary Alistair Darling when he set out his 30-year plan for UK airports on Tuesday.

He told MPs a new runway would be built at Stansted in Essex by 2011.

He is also proposing that a third runway be built by 2020 at Heathrow, subject to a number of environmental and noise conditions being met, and an additional runway at Birmingham.

Ruling out a new runway for Luton, he said the airport authorities should maximise the use of its existing single runway.

Bigger aircraft

Airport spokesman Ian Briggs said: "The implication of maximum use is that we will be allowed to build a full-length runway and put in the infrastructure to support that."

If that went ahead, passengers numbers could grow from the current 6.7 million a year to 30 million by 2030, he said.

Owner and operator TBI has welcomed the announcement.

The company did not want a second runway because it did not believe it would generate greater economic benefit.

Instead, it wants to build a full-length runway which would allow bigger aircraft to use the airport.

Managing director Paul Kehoe said they were pleased the government had recognised the key role Luton Airport had to play.