Boss of airship firm warns closure of Doncaster Sheffield Airport would be 'blow to innovation and jobs'

The boss of an airship firm set to create 1,200 jobs in South Yorkshire has warned the closure of Doncaster Sheffield Airport would harm green aviation in Yorkshire.
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Tom Grundy, CEO of Hybrid Air Vehicles, urged Government to step up and get behind the site.

Airport owner Peel Group could close the airport saying it ‘many no longer be viable’.

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Tom Grundy, CEO of Hybrid Air Vehicles, said he supported the campaign to keep the site open but the firm did not depend on it for their operations.Tom Grundy, CEO of Hybrid Air Vehicles, said he supported the campaign to keep the site open but the firm did not depend on it for their operations.
Tom Grundy, CEO of Hybrid Air Vehicles, said he supported the campaign to keep the site open but the firm did not depend on it for their operations.
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In June, Hybrid Air Vehicles announced it planned to open a factory in South Yorkshire to build its motorised airships.

Mr Grundy said: "Hybrid Air Vehicles is working to establish our Airlander 10 assembly line in South Yorkshire and we recognise the importance of Doncaster Sheffield Airport to the region, for the connections it provides and as one of the cornerstones of the South Yorkshire innovation corridor.

“Our plans are not reliant on being at DSA – Airlander does not need to operate from today’s airports. But we want to see a thriving regional airport at DSA, we are supporting the campaign to keep it open, and we are evaluating how our project can help do that.

“We can see that businesses in the area are stepping up: SYMCA, Doncaster Council and the local MPs are doing their part to drive innovation and attract investment.

Hybrid Air Vehicles has signed a deal to deliver 10 of its 100-passenger helium-filled airships to Spanish airline Air Nostrum.Hybrid Air Vehicles has signed a deal to deliver 10 of its 100-passenger helium-filled airships to Spanish airline Air Nostrum.
Hybrid Air Vehicles has signed a deal to deliver 10 of its 100-passenger helium-filled airships to Spanish airline Air Nostrum.
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“At Hybrid Air Vehicles we plan to create 1,200 new direct high skilled jobs in South Yorkshire, bringing hundreds of millions of pounds of inward investment to the region through our work.

“We have not yet seen the same step up from central government, so if we really want to level up, then we urge Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak to get behind DSA and businesses like ours looking to create new, green aviation opportunities, or risk dealing a blow to innovation and to jobs in Yorkshire."

Tom Grundy, CEO of Hybrid Air Vehicles.Tom Grundy, CEO of Hybrid Air Vehicles.
Tom Grundy, CEO of Hybrid Air Vehicles.

Hybrid Air Vehicles has signed a deal to deliver 10 of its 100-passenger helium-filled airships to Spanish airline Air Nostrum.

They will be manufacturerd at a new ‘green aerospace cluster’ in an as yet unnamed location in South Yorkshire.

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The aircraft have less than a tenth of the CO2 footprint of a passenger jet planes, the company says. And although it looks like a blimp it is also part plane, relying on engines and aerodynamics for lift.

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