London RAF Northolt to close for resurfacing
London’s private jet charter passengers will have one fewer choice of airport for most of the rest of 2019, with RAF Northolt closed for its long-awaited runway resurfacing. This is effective from April 5th, with the airport scheduled to reopen for business on November 11th.
The resurfacing work, set to cost £23 million, will upgrade the existing runway, improve drainage and install new arrestor beds to improve safety. This will extend the life of the current runway by 10 to 15 years.
In addition to being the RAF’s main operational base in London, including the home of No 32 (The Royal) Squadron, London RAF Northolt has become one of the most sought-after private jet airports in the last decade. Its appeal lies in its central London location, and very high levels of privacy and security.
But lower investment in staffing over the past couple of years has made it difficult to secure a slot here for private jet flights – or created last minute operational changes after a flight is booked. So the airport has started to fall out of favour with many London customers and operators (which is reflected in its falling flight activity levels for business aviation overall).
This closure adds to capacity issues for London-based private jet travel, over the busy summer period. Last summer it was challenging to secure slots, especially those wanting to fly at night or very early in the morning, with Stansted limiting late night flights and Luton banning them altogether (no private jets were allowed to operate between 22.00 and 06.00, June – September). The same restrictions apply this summer – but now also overlapping with Northolt’s closure.
(And looking at Europe as a whole, there is also a planned closure at Milan Linate from July to October – another one of Europe’s Top 10 busiest private jet airports.)
Other airports will pick up more business as a result of course. In London, both Biggin Hill and Farnborough saw significant rises in activity last year. And newcomers Southend and Oxford are also doing a good job of marketing themselves to customers and the industry.
Hopefully the Northolt project will also see staffing issues addressed and the airport get back to full strength as a business aviation airport. In any industry, a multi-million pound investment would not be made without a wider operational review, to ensure a worthwhile return. It would be fantastic to return to being able to confidently offer Northolt as a London airport option, to more of our customers, later in 2019.
Talk to our expert team for advice on the best London airport for your flight. Contact us or call (24/7) +44 (0)20 7100 6960.
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