The future is budget hols

Another senior executive heads for the departure gate at Prestwick Airport – they should be replacing the terminal’s sliding doors with revolving ones!

Business development director Mike Stewart has left citing ill health – and that can’t be helped. But it certainly doesn’t help the airport’s reputation to see another “airport boss quits” headline.

By coincidence, I had a chat with a retired airport manager last week – he’s worked in the USA and Far East – and his views on Prestwick were blunt but frank.

“The future is budget, short- haul,” he told me. “I can see scores of daily flights to scores of European destinations – and they’ll be £ 25 a seat. They’ll be like buses”

“Initially, Glasgow will fill its boots – but it will eventually become too busy. Gatwick and Stansted grew out of Heathrow’s limited capacity.

“There is also Glasgow’s single runway to consider. Runways have a stress limit to the pounding more traffic brings – and Glasgow is going to have to upgrade at sometime. It could close for months – and Prestwick would be the obvious beneficiary.

“Long term, Glasgow will need a second airport by around 2027.

“Keeping Prestwick open till 2027 will cost about £ 100 million. Closing it, and building a new airport in 2027 will cost ten times that - minimum.”

“I’d hang on to Prestwick – mothballed but maintained – for as long as is necessary.

“The traffic will come eventually – but ‘ eventually’ could be too long a wait for the Scottish government to continue its subsidies.”

It’s an interesting take on our problem airport.

And it’s an intriguing scenario to throw into the endless Prestwick debate.