Carlisle Lake District Airport

Carlisle Airport (IATA: CAX, ICAO: EGNC) is located 5 nautical miles (9.3 km) east northeast of Carlisle, Cumbria, England.

Carlisle has a CAA Public Use Aerodrome Licence (Number P855) that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction, up to a MTWA of 12.5 tonnes.

Being located on a strategic hill side, Carlisle airport has been the location for some pre-historic resident excavations

RAF Crosby-on-Eden

In the 1930s, the City of Carlisle opened Kingston airport, now RAF Carlisle. With the outbreak of war in 1939, Kingston's runway was too small for bombers, so the Royal Air Force developed a new airstrip at Crosby-on-Eden . The new facaility came into operation in February 1941 for training operations, designating the station RAF Crosby-on-Eden.

Originally No.59 Operational Training Unit provided day training for Hawker_Hurricane pilots , which was replaced by OTU17 Group Costal Command in August 1942 for training long-range fighter crews on Bristol Beaufort and Bristol Beaufighter conversion squadrons, as well as air firing and night flying . In August 1944 the station came under the command of 109 OTU, a transport command of Douglas Dakotas . The station was renamed 1383 TCU 1/8/45. After World War 2 British European Airways commenced flights to Ronaldsway and Belfast. However, the station had no post war use or need, as was closed in 1947.

Carlisle Airport

In 1960 Cumberland County Council purchased the site and renamed it Carlisle Airport. After a short refurbishment program it was licensed in 1961 for training purposes and civilian flights to destinations including London, the Channel Islands, Belfast and the Isle of Man . Most of the original RAF structures remain intact today, although a lack of investment and maintenance has restricted much of the perimeter road, as well as shortening and weight restricting the runways. The airport was transferred to Carlisle Council in 1968.

Although planned, regular scheduled flights from the airport have been planned for, they hav enever been viable commercially leading to a series of failed operations. In 1978 British Nuclear Fuels began flying nuclear material to customers in the UK and Europe, but this was topped shortly after coming to media attention. In 1982 Air Ecosse started flights to Scotland (Aberdeen, Glasgow, Dundee), and London, followed a year later for one summer season only to the Isle of Man. After the collapse of Air Ecosse in 1985, it routes collapsed and only the route to London was taken over for two years by EuroAir. Viking began flights to Jersey in 1985 but went into receivership in 1987, the same year Air Furness briefly revived Isle of Man flights for one summer season .

On 21 December, 1988, Pan Am Flight 103 crashed at Lockerbie. Carlisle was the nearest airport, and took 4 movements in the 24Hrs before theb accident, and 196 in the 24Hrs following the accident - including rescue and media helicopters, and a United States Air Force C-130 Hercules .

In 1993 New Air started a London service to London Stansted Airport, but collapsed two months later. Lakeside Northwest continued the service until the end of the year, but also collapsed - while in 1994 Northumberland-based Geordie Air Travel never got of the ground.

In 1995 Lewis Holidays planned to run Saturday flights to Jersey, while in 1996 Cumbria council refused to give financial support to Belgian airline VLM for 4 flights per day to London City Airport. In 1997 the council agreed to extend the runway to allow Boeing 747's to land into a new air-cargo hub, but the proposal collapsed.

Haughey Airports

As the airport had lost £3.5 million on operations between 1979 and 1994, Carlisle Council agreed to sell the airport on a 150 year lease to Haughey Airports in 2000. The company was owned by Irish entrepreneur Edward Haughey, who owns near by Corby Castle in Cumbria. Haughey put £4 million into infra structure improvements, and gave Solway Aviation Museum two hangers and an addition 200,000sqft.

WA Developments/Stobart

In May 2006, Haughey Airports was acquired by the WA Developments, owned by Andrew Tinkler and William Stobart. Eddie Stobart Ltd., the UK's largest haulage contractor is also part of the WA Developments group, and future plans include locating a joint head quarters building on the site, as well as transport and distribution facilities.

Future plans

Major development is planned for Carlisle Airport and could see the introduction of freight and passenger services in the future, along with the possible construction of a new runway to be able to accept larger aircraft, as part of a £21 million development . If the development is completed as projected, then Ryanair have expressed an interest in using the airport as a hub .

In 2002 a UK Government paper on UK aviation said that Carlisle Airport could handle between 700,000 and one million passengers a year by 2030, subject to investment in a new terminal.

Solway Aviation Museum

Solway Aviation Museum is an independently run aircraft mueum located at Carlisle Airport.

The current collection includes:

• F-4 Phantom II - the original gate guard at RAF Carlisle
• Avro Vulcan - XJ823 was flown into Carlisle Airport in January 1983, after the Falklands War

References

• United Kingdom AIP

External link

• Carlisle Airport
• Solway Aviation Museum
• Discussion board forum on commercial operatiosn during the 1990's

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