Exclusive:New figures reveal how Doncaster Sheffield Airport flights could soar to 56 a day
A "noise monitoring committee" will stage its first meeting some time in October
Officials have revealed that there could be as many as 56 flights a day at Doncaster Sheffield Airport by 2037 - up from just six predicted for 2028.
The airport is now forecasting an average of 34 aircraft movements a day by 2037 – but as many as 56 on a busy summer day.
That compares with an average of six movements a day predicted for 2028.
Cargo operations could also resume as early as next year, although officials say it is too early to give an accurate figure of how many.
Yet to be resolved for residents in places like Bawtry, Hatfield, Finningley and Thorne is how many night flights will there be to and from the planned 24-hour airport?
DSA has also clarified its position on pilot training – a practice that involves repeated circuits by aircraft over communities.
A consultation representative at an earlier public event in Bawtry had stated that there were no plans to re-activate intensive flight-training circuits.
However, a DSA spokesperson partially contradicted that, telling The Star that while larger aircraft will not be used for circuits, some commercial-aircraft training and 'touch-and-go' landing/take off manoeuvres will occur.
A "noise monitoring committee" will stage its first meeting some time in October.
There are also more 'in-person' events planned for Finningley (Sept2,) Thorne (Sept 10) and Doncaster city centre (Sept 19.)
We put a series of questions to DSA's publicity wing.
Q: The Bawtry event featured display boards suggesting that by 2037 there would be a daily average of 17 arrivals and 17 departures. However, a representative on site admitted this was not consistent with online projections for 2037, which she said could be 28 arrivals and 28 departures. Can you clarify?
A: Our consultation materials, including the banners, reference an ‘average day number’ for 2037 as 17 arrivals and 17 departures, which is an average taken across the year. Our Operational Diagrams (detailed maps and associated tables) illustrate airport operations on a 2037 'busy day'.
A 'busy day' is calculated based on when the airport could be busiest, which in general in the UK is in the summer months.With the existing forecast, for 2037 we anticipate 28 departures and 28 arrivals on a ‘busy day’.
The team at the airport have every intention of making it a success, which would equate to more flights per day than were previously handled per day during the 2005-2022 period.
Q: Can you confirm the airport will operate 24 hours a day? Any restrictions envisaged on night aircraft movements?
A: What primarily governs 24 hour flight movements is the planning consents set out in a Section 106 agreement (a contract between the airport and the local planning authority to mitigate the environmental/community impacts) rather than an ACP (Airspace Change Proposal detailing flight paths.)
When the Airport was previously operational, the permissions included provision for 24 hour flights, albeit with tighter rules for flights during the 11pm-7am timeframe.
Prior to the airport opening, there are a number of aspects of operations which need to be in place. These include noise mitigation measures such as, the use of preferential runways, visual circuit and circuit heights, (traffic patterns around the airfield) specification of maximum noise levels for aircraft operating at night and fixed and mobile noise monitoring terminals etc.
These measures need to be submitted and approved by the Local Planning Authority prior to the airport opening.
We are working closely with the Airport Consultative Committee, to ensure that community feedback is gathered and actioned by creating a noise monitoring committee, the first meeting of this committee will be held in October, providing a structure for feedback well before the airport is fully operational.
Q: The consultation representative at the Mayflower School event this month said there were no plans to use the airport for flight training.She also suggested Bawtry itself would likely be on the flight path for more departing aircraft than arriving aircraft. Can you confirm?
A: Resident concerns have been noted around flight training during the pre-2022 operation of the airport.
Primarily those concerns have been around larger aircraft completing multiple short circuits in a very condensed time frame. We have listened to these concerns and do not currently anticipate the need for or value in allowing larger aircraft to do these intensive training circuits.
Some flight training and ‘touch and go’ manoeuvres will be necessary on commercial aircraft for pilot training, and we do anticipate smaller/light aircraft to complete flight training, which will provide invaluable training opportunities for our Air Traffic Services team. However, any impact from these smaller aircraft is expected to be much lighter than the previously described scenario.
In terms of direction of departures, because aircraft generally take off into the wind, it is likely that around 60%-70% of days of the year, flights will depart from Runway 20, which mean aircraft take-off towards Bawtry (into the prevailing wind).
For the other 30-40% of the year, flights will depart from runway 02 - the other direction to Bawtry.
Q: Has there been any assessment of the likely number of late-running flights, given the Civil Aviation Authority’s final punctuality figures showed 45.8% of reported flights were more than 15 minutes late in September 2022?
A: There are several scenarios that can result in flights not running to schedule, most of which are not under the control of FlyDoncaster Ltd (the operating company established by the council.)
We are hopeful that due to the proposed volume of flights anticipated, we will be able to accommodate arrivals and departures so that they run as closely to schedule as possible, where those factors are within our control.
Q: The Mayflower event representative also stated there is an expectation of cargo flying in and out in 2027, with passenger jets beginning the year after. Is that correct?
A: It is too early to provide any accurate data on potential cargo and/or general aviation flights in 2027. There has been interest in flight movements during that year, given live commercial negotiations we are not able to provide any potential figures at this time until these are concluded.
Any flight movements will be conditional upon the relevant certifications and safety standards being in place. DSA also says they are aiming to work "with all aircraft operators to ensure we strive towards reducing carbon emissions where possible and will of course be looking to take measures, including those outlined above, to mitigate carbon and noise emissions."
*One further point that can be clarified is that easyJet – the company pulling out of Leeds Bradford Airport – has no plans to start operating from Doncaster Sheffield.
There has been speculation online that easyJet could move to South Yorkshire, but the company explicitly denied this when questioned by The Star.