01 February 2023 , 14:10
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A long abandoned airport could be whizzing passengers abroad on budget flights before the end of the decade.
Manston Airport in Kent has just been given the go-ahead to start flying again, having been out of operation for close to ten years.
The travel hub, which served as a home to the Royal Air Force during the World Wars, is now undergoing a string of renovations and is scheduled to open in 2025.
At that point it will just serve as a cargo airport.
However, negotiations are said to be underway to add passenger flights to its schedule as well, with the first to begin flying from 2028.
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The airport has been closed since 2014 (PA)The effort to get Manston up to scratch will reportedly cost around £500million and will include new terminals and updated runways.
Whole new roads will need to be built and many of the current buildings demolished at the site, which was losing a vast amount of money when it closed in 2014.
If the cargo side of the airport proves to be a success, then passenger routes to the likes of Netherlands, Spain, Cyprus and Malta could be launched.
Bosses are said to be in talks with budget airlines such as Ryanair, easyJet and Wizz Air, The Sun reports.
RiverOak Strategic Partners now own the site (KMG / SWNS)The success of nearby airports Luton and Stansted suggest there may be enough demand in the area for more passenger flights.
Airport owners RiverOak Strategic Partners - who bought the site for £14million - will begin by operating five cargo flights per day.
The refurbishment plans secured permission last August despite the application being recommended for refusal by planners.
The Planning Inspectorate had given several reasons for rejecting the development consent order application.
The airport will start running cargo routes (PA)These included the need for the proposals at Manston Airport had not been demonstrated "additional to, or different from" the need met by other airports.
They also raised the likely negative impact on the environment an extra airport would create, as well as more pressure on local roads and extra noise.
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Since 2015 the airport has been used as an emergency lorry park in the event of temporary cross-Channel traffic problems.
Following a long period of heavy financial losses, Manston's last scheduled flight departed for Amsterdam on 9 April 2014.
A statement from RiverOak Strategic Partners reads: "Once reopened, Manston will help the UK trade across the globe, importing vital and time-sensitive goods, including fresh fruit and medical supplies, providing air freight operators with a realistic alternative to the overcrowded London airports, easing the considerable road congestion caused by lorries carrying freight through the channel tunnel to European airports and improving resilience and boost economic growth and jobs in Kent."
It was the only major airport operating in Kent, which has a number of smaller aviation facilities including Rochester Airport and Lydd Airport.
The runway has been used as a lorry park (Getty Images)During WWII Manston was almost destroyed in intense attacks and ended up littered with unexploded bombs.
It was regularly used by badly-damaged planes coming in to make emergency landings due to its position close to the frontline.
Following its closure last decade the site has been used as a filming location and was featured last year in Sam Mendes' Empire of Light.