Gatwick's Second Runway: Ready for Takeoff, If Only the Government Would Hurry Up

Gatwick Airport is done playing the waiting game. After years of second-fiddle status to Heathrow, London’s scrappier second airport is turbocharging its bid for a second runway – and wants the UK government to quit faffing about and just approve it already.

Stewart Wingate, Gatwick’s ever-hopeful CEO, has fired off a not-so-subtle message to Westminster: make the call before the official 27 October deadline. Because why wait when you’re sitting on a £2.2 billion plan, 14,000 new jobs, and enough economic glitter to blind an entire Cabinet?

Wingate reckons expanding Gatwick isn’t just good for the South East – it’s “new business opportunities” on a national scale. (Translation: open the runway, watch the cash roll in.)

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A Green Light… With a Few Speed Bumps

Gatwick got a major lift-off earlier this year when Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said she was “minded to approve” the airport’s Northern Runway expansion – but only if Gatwick agreed to be a lot nicer about noise and public transport.

Now, Gatwick has played ball:

Noise limits? Accepted.
New insulation for local residents? Signed off.
54% of passengers arriving by public transport? Agreed (with some heavy side-eye because, well, trains and buses aren’t exactly under Gatwick’s control).

In fact, Gatwick’s even promising a tiered noise payment scheme – because if you’re going to get blasted by jet engines, you might as well get paid for it. Homes hit with 54-57 decibels and 57-60 decibels will get financial compensation. Hit 60+? Full noise insulation, no strings (or stingy caps) attached.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles… and More Trains, Please

Gatwick wants more trains to hit that magic 54% public transport target. A lot more. The airport’s gunning for the Gatwick Express to return to four trains an hour from London – instead of the sorry two currently chugging along.

If not? Gatwick’s got a backup plan: limit car arrivals to 24 million a year and hold the new runway hostage until £350 million of road upgrades are in place. Talk about playing hardball.

A Northern Runway by the Numbers

Cost: £2.2 billion (no taxpayer cash – this one’s on the shareholders)
First flights: End of the decade
Passenger capacity: Up to 75 million a year by the late 2030s (vs. the 46.5 million pre-pandemic high)

And what’s the magic trick? Shift the current emergency runway 12 metres north – just enough to safely run two takeoffs and landings side-by-side. Simple, right?

So What’s the Hold-Up?

Despite Gatwick bending over backwards (and sideways) to meet conditions, the Planning Inspectorate wasn’t entirely dazzled. They recommended rejecting the original proposal – but said they’d approve it if Gatwick made enough changes. (Because planning in the UK can never just be a straight yes or no.)

Still, Gatwick’s playing the long game. Wingate insists that confidence is key: “Before you make the investment, you need to know you’ll get the utility out of it.” In other words, no one drops £2.2 billion just for the vibes.

The final government decision is still technically due on 27 October – but Gatwick’s making it very clear: speed it up. The economy’s waiting, the jobs are waiting, and frankly, Gatwick’s patience is wearing thin.

Meanwhile, Across the Runway…

This isn’t just Gatwick’s solo dance. The government has already given the nod to expansions in London City and Luton, and Heathrow’s third runway is still (allegedly) “in the pipeline,” despite approximately one million legal challenges and protests.

Of course, environmental groups are circling like hawks, warning that Gatwick’s plans aren’t exactly best mates with the UK’s net zero 2050 promises. (Because what’s a British airport expansion without a side serving of existential climate dread?)

Still, ministers are pressing ahead with the “growth at all costs” mantra – and Gatwick’s second runway is now firmly strapped into the government’s bigger mission to rewire Britain’s global connections.