Ministers considering new £800m airport at Redhill

Ministers are considering the £800m expansion of an aerodrome in Redhill, Surrey, into a functioning airport which could handle 15 million domestic and European passengers a year.

The revelation, made in The Evening Standard today (Tuesday), claims that the 'London Redhill' project would circumvent a ban on expansion at Gatwick, only 7.5km away, and could be operational within four years of planning permission being granted.

As ministers consider options to increase airport infrastructure, the new airport could be linked to Gatwick by rail but would have its own terminal, check-in, immigration facilities and a 2,000m East and West runway parallel to that at Gatwick.

Developers are expected to welcome the plans which would require only a small number of existing houses to be demolished and a limited disturbance to protected wildlife sites - a major issue with the other option of developing a new airport at Cliffe on the Kent marshes.

No public money would be needed as almost all the land is already owned by Redhill Aerodrome Ltd.

Alternative plans for expansion at Heathrow and Stansted, which would take 10 to 15 years to complete, are just some of the ideas to be assessed by the government before the release of its White Paper on Air Transport next Autumn.