RSP's statement is in black
Editor's comments in red
Steer report "Steer Assessment-of-the-value-of-air-freight-services-to-the-UK-economy-Final-Report-v22-Oct-2018-b-STEER can be downloaded from here
Manston: an airfreight hub for London & the Southeast
Manston Airport is a unique and important transport
infrastructure asset. An illustrious history as a Battle of Britain airfield
and an exciting future as a vibrant hub for international airfreight,
delivering economic prosperity and employment across Kent and protecting a
strategic aviation resource for the nation.
RSP’s proposals for the redevelopment of Manston Airport as
a dedicated airfreight hub have now been approved by the UK Government as a
Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project.
Once reopened, Manston will help the UK trade across the
globe, importing vital and time-sensitive goods, including fresh fruit and
medical supplies, providing air freight operators with a realistic alternative
to the overcrowded London airports, easing the considerable road congestion
caused by lorries carrying freight through the channel tunnel to European
airports and improving resilience and boost economic growth and jobs in Kent.
Ignoring the very real increase in
HGV movements along the Thanet Way onto an already overcrowded A2/M2 corridor
and the QE2 Bridge across the Thames. As Manston isn’t connected to the fuel
pipeline Aviation fuel will have to be trucked from the refinery at Canvey yet
again adding to the congestion at the Dartford river crossing
Manston Airport is also unique in that it is deliverable; it
will be ready to open its initial phase in less than three years.
Not a spadeful can be turned until
the DCO conditions are complied with including the moving of the HRDF. There
are a number of conditions that need meeting before development starts. Please
read the DCO document pages 35-44. In all 24 conditions MUST be met.
Upon opening it will:
Immediately absorb the increased demand for air cargo post
COVID and Brexit and relieving capacity pressure on key London airports as they
focus on passenger markets.
Provide an operating base for UK traffic currently lost to
EU airports and create future capacity to meet global freight growth, adapting
to changing market requirements using the latest technology.
When fully built, Manston will be able to handle in excess
of a million tonnes of freight a year.
Very careful wording here, “will be
able to handle” is light years away from “will achieve” in fact the Total
tonnage of airfreight in the UK in 2019 (before Brexit and Covid) was 2535422
tonnes and 2020 and 2021 were 21% and 9.38% below that level.
The Development Consent Order – granted August 2022
The Government has granted the Development Consent Order
because our plans for Manston are consistent with all relevant Government
policies, including the Airports National Policy Statement, the Aviation Policy
Framework, General Aviation strategy and Transport Decarbonisation Plan, and
recognising the contribution Manston will make to resilience in UK’s
under-pressure freight transport sector.
In addition, Manston will make a significant contribution to
the decarbonisation of aviation and so is aligned with the Government’s 2022
Jet Zero consultation outcomes.
The Government-approved Development Consent Order provides
consent for:
19 widebody parking stands
4 narrow body passenger stands 65,000m2 (750,000ft2) of
cargo terminal
100 ha of non-aircraft pavement (247 acres)
57 ha (140 acres) of aircraft pavement 105,000m2
(1.1m ft2) of landside development
8 business aviation hangers
3 recycling hangars and aprons
Securing flight procedures for Manston
Before Manston can reopen, new air routes must be approved
through an airspace change process set out in the Civil Aviation Publication
(CAP) 1616. The process consists of seven stages and the Manston Airport
proposal has already reached Stage 3.
But only after 3 years of work.
Doesn’t bode well for the next 4 stages
RSP has developed a number of options for the flight
procedures that will be required when the airport re-opens. These options will
be subject to a full public consultation, which is currently programmed for
early 2023.
Following this consultation, we will be able to submit our
proposal to the CAA for consideration, with a decision expected during the
course of 2024.
Why Manston?
1. The global air cargo market is growing
Ecommerce giants are transforming the air freight market,
with their share of total sales reaching 25% very soon.
This is inspiring the growth of specialist freighter hubs.
By way of an example, Amazon now has 85 aircraft with a further five on order
and are expected to have 200 by 2028. In Europe alone, Amazon is making 38
daily flights serving eight cities.
But have recently withdrawn their
aircraft from their hub at Southend and have stated they will truck goods in
instead as cheaper
2. The UK is reliant on air cargo for economic growth and
resilience
No it isn’t airfreight only accounts
for ½ of 1% of all shipped tonnage with less than 1% annual growth over the
last 20 years. In fact pure freighters atms have dropped by 50% in the last 20
years with the growth of bellyhold mainly at Heathrow.
Maximising international import/export, post-Brexit and
post-COVID, is critical to the UK economy and the UK economy is increasingly
reliant on airfreight to achieve this. Air cargo provides the immediacy that
the UK relies upon for perishables, medicines and other time-sensitive goods
Dedicated freighters carry over 50% of the world’s air
cargo. Airframe manufacturer Boeing forecasts global freighter fleet to grow
more than 60% to 3,260 over the next two decades.
Boeing certainly do but their
forecast for the UK market is less rosy.
Prior to COVID, more than £2 billion was lost to the London
and Southeast England economy each year due to air freight diverted to Europe
due to lack of capacity. Dedicated freighters could not find suitable slots
anywhere in London and the Southeast – leading to 70% of freight flying belly
hold in passenger aircraft.
This statement shows a complete lack
of understanding how aircargo is managed. Also it should be apparent that
during operations Manston would have been a closer airport than Liege (European
aircargo hub) but nothing came to Manston despite its inactivity.
COVID has reinforced the cargo sector – and created a
cultural shift that underpins the Manston strategy. One key observation from
the COVID-19 crisis has been the importance of main deck freighters in airplane
fleets and the global air transportation system. Freight use of passenger slots
is unsustainable and inefficient, and many passenger airports lack air freight
facilities.
Again a lie. Heathrow was the
Premier airfreight hub (2/3rds of aircargo came through Heathrow in the belly
of PAX) however with lockdown and the grounding of PAX much freight was
directed on to pure freighters. Total aircargo dropped by 21% in 2020 due to
this lack of capacity. However 2021 showed a partial recovery (only down 9.38%
on 2019 levels) as PAX resumed.
In terms of the security of the UK economy, it is clear that
cargo hubs can increase our resilience as an island nation: COVID-19 showed
increasing critical importance of dedicated air cargo in protecting supply
chain dependability.
3. Manston has capacity for growth
Manston has a strategically useful location by road, rail
freight, air – and water. It has a full length, existing runway 2,748m (9,016
feet), capable of handling all widebody freighters and with a phased
construction plan already developed it can be ready to open in under three
years.
Manston has had these advantages
ever since the War Department built the concrete runway 1945/46. I wonder why
no hard headed business people have taken advantage?
In addition, it benefits from proximity to (but remains just
outside of) London and Southeast airspace.
So is Southend where Amazon has just
walked away from
The airspace over London and the Southeast is among the
busiest and most congested in Europe – with the exception of the airspace over
Manston. The London Terminal Manoeuvring Area (LTMA), west of Manston, handles
aircraft using Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Luton, Southend and London City
airports – plus Biggin Hill and Farnborough airfields.
And Manston will add to if it ever
they get granted a licence.
The airspace above Manston is much less congested, with
aircraft at a much higher altitude. It also has capacity for significant future
growth.
Airfreight – unable to access slots within the LTMA – is
regularly trucked through the Channel Tunnel or via ferry to airports in
mainland Europe to fly long-haul.
All 3 main airports for freight are
well able to give slots to freight aircargo. That is Heathrow (Bellyhold is
nearly back to pre-pandemic levels), East Midlands and Stanstead have space
available.
The challenges of
Brexit have motivated UK importers and exporters look for alternatives to the
practice of trucking through the Channel crossings to and from airports in
Northern Europe.
Airfreight is still depressed, 2020
was down 20% on 2019 levels and 2021 down 9.29% on 2019. Trucking is still 4-5X
cheaper than airfreight.
From 2025 they will instead be able to direct their business
to Manston as the only airport offering substantial numbers of slots and
capacity.
See above. This statement is wishful
thinking
4. Other London and Southeast airports cannot handle the
increased demand for dedicated freighters
Both EMA and Stanstead have stated
they have capacity both now and into the future
Boeing categorises congestion in London airports as serious.
The existing London airport runways will soon be back at capacity, and they are
prioritising passenger traffic over freight movements.
Heathrow’s third runway was first proposed in 2006 but will
take at least another decade to deliver
Stansted Airport has been granted consent to reduce cargo
movements in favour of increased pax movements
Again this is a deliberate misuse of
Stanstead’s reduction in aircargo ATMs. What they asked for is permission to
change cargo for PAX as aircargo had failed to grow at the forecasted rate and
had never reached 2/3rds of the allocated ATMs
Passenger traffic growth will absorb almost all UK runway
capacity
Again this is a lie as 4 airports
are currently unviable. That is Cardiff, Southend, Doncaster/Sheffield and
Prestwick and have struggled to find new owners
Current closest alternative cargo airport with realistic
capacity is three hours’ drive from the London M25 orbital motorway
Which is irrelevant as the main
central warehousing for freight is centred on the “Golden Triangle” in the
Midlands. Manston is 3 further hours away from this “Golden Triangle”.
In addition, there are extreme difficulties in obtaining
planning consents for new airports in the UK. So the solution to the capacity
crisis can only realistically come from an airport adjacent to, but outside of
the London Airport system that is already built and can be ready to go quickly.
Like Southend
5. Manston will be built to be Carbon Net Zero
Aviation, and in particular the cargo sector, is not a
luxury that the UK economy can live without and so it is incumbent on airlines,
airport operators and governments to work together to protect its vital role in
the economy, whilst simultaneously striving towards sustainability.
The Government has made it clear that it requires ‘high
innovation’ of aviation to meet carbon reduction targets – something which we
have willingly committed to delivering within the terms of the DCO, based upon
the significant levels of investment, innovation and testing on alternative
aviation fuels and technologies underway in the global aviation community.
The facilities at Manston will be built to make an active
contribution to Government carbon reduction targets, with the aim that airport
operations are Carbon Net Zero operation by 2035 through the use of smart and
energy efficient buildings, the use of electric apron vehicles and autonomous
vehicle technology to drive efficiency, the lack of airspace congestion above
Manston and much more.
In addition, we are also exploring how we can best utilise
the airport’s river connections into central London, the use of bio/synthetic
fuel, hydrogen and charging for electric aircraft and whether we would be able
to provide any renewable energy surplus to the local community.
Building a strong economic future for Kent
Manston will deliver sustainable economic growth and
opportunity in a UK gateway region, supporting regional regeneration, inward
investment and employment targets. By Year 5 we forecast 2,150 jobs on the
airport site and 13,100 indirect/catalytic jobs.
RSP is meeting with a wide range of other potential partners
and stakeholders across Thanet and East Kent to explore opportunities and
develop partnerships that will bring additional benefits to local people from
our commitment to reopening the airport.
The airport will provide focused training and career
development for students and adult learners through progressive education and
business partnerships, building on the work established by the Manston Skills
and Employment Board (MSE-B) to ensure people from East Kent have the right
skills to take the wide range of jobs that will be created by the reopening of
Manston.
The MSE-Board considers the future employment and skills
needs of the airport following DCO approval, from planning and construction
through to operation.
The aim of the MSE-B is to ensure that Manston and
associated businesses will have access to well-trained and experienced
potential employees across a diverse range of skillsets. The MSE-B will do this
by ensuring a comprehensive range of services are available to young people,
job seekers and employers in the area around the airport.
In addition to RSP, the MSE-B membership currently includes
representatives from:
Thanet District Council
Dover District Council
Canterbury City Council
Kent County Council
EKC Group
Canterbury Christ Church University/EDGE Hub
Kent and Medway Skills Commission
The Education People
Jobcentre Plus
Discovery Park
Thanet and East Kent Chamber of Commerce
Board representation is available to unrepresented local
councils and business sectors.
Manston is the right solution, in the right location, at the
right time
Appendix 1
Steer report 2017
“Market Analysis
Bellyhold cargo at Heathrow
accounted for over 60% of total UK air freight volume in 2017, with forwarders
and shippers utilising its extensive intercontinental passenger network. Over 30%
of total air freight was shipped on US routes and most of the remainder on
Asian routes. Freighter and integrator cargo is concentrated at East Midlands
and Stansted, which, in 2017, together accounted for over 20% of all UK freight
and the majority of freighter (60%) and integrator (79%) activity. Integrators
accounted for over 90% of freight at East Midlands. At Stansted, integrators
FedEx and UPS were the largest cargo airlines, although intercontinental freighters
such as Qatar Airways, Cargolux and China Southern also accounted for a large
share of volume.
In the last 15 years, aside from the
decline in 2009 due to the fallout from the financial crisis, total volumes
have remained relatively flat, growing with a compound average growth rate (CAGR)
of +1.2% over the 15-year period with volumes only surpassing the pre-crisis
peak in 2016.
North America was the largest
destination market (accounting for 32% of volume), followed by Europe (25%, 18%
of which was to the EU) and, South and East Asia (19%). Heathrow, and to a lesser
extent Gatwick, handled predominately North American and Asian freight,
benefitting from extensive passenger networks. The large European share of
volume at East Midlands reflects the airport’s role within its integrators’
networks. Similarly, at Stansted, much of the freight volume is on European and
North American routes.”
Trucked freight
2.24 Alongside the business models
described above, a significant amount of air freight is transported in
customs-bonded trucks between the UK and continental Europe and is classified as
air freight with an assigned flight number. Freight is often flown to
continental Europe, particularly from Asia, as there is often more available
air freight capacity than to UK airports, partly due to lack of available slots
for freighter aircraft at Heathrow. The freight is trucked as bonded freight to
avoid having to undergo local customs procedures so that importers only need to
deal with the UK customs authorities rather than investing in systems to deal
with multiple customs authorities. This represents an inefficiency from the
perspective of the UK economy as whole. See also the Case Study on consumer
electronics imports at the end of this chapter.
2.25 In contrast to goods from Asia,
Heathrow stated that goods destined for North America are also often trucked to
the UK, in particular Heathrow, from continental Europe in order to take advantage
of cheaper rates from the UK on North American routes. As Heathrow is the primary
European hub for North American passenger connections, there is a significant
level of bellyhold capacity available, which means air freight rates are
cheaper compared to other European airports.
2.27 One notable feature of the UK
air freight market is the huge importance of Heathrow and its surrounding
freight facilities, with most forwarders having major consolidation centres in
the vicinity of the airport, as noted in paragraph 2.19 above. Very significant
volumes of air freight are trucked to such facilities near Heathrow, processed
and then trucked to another airport, either in the UK or in continental Europe,
without ever flying in or out of Heathrow itself.
2.28 Another common model is freight
arriving from long haul origins (such as China or the US) flown into Heathrow
and then being trucked to other airports (e.g. East Midlands) to be flown to
continental airports overnight, leading to a symbiotic relationship between the
different airports.
2.29 Both of these models mean that
the resilience of the road network to and from airports is an important factor
in reliability of service. To a large extent, they reflect the constraints on
the UK air freight industry"
