Contents
SASIG 2013/14 Meeting Dates
Regional News
Industry News
Parliamentary News
Goverment News
Media News
SASIG 2013/14 Meeting Dates
25 October 2013
7 March 2014
Meetings are held at Local Government House, Smith Square, SW1P 3HZ, location map.
Regional News
12 August 2013 – Gatwick airport handled an increased number of passengers last month. A total of more than 3.8 million passengers passed through Gatwick in July 2013 – a 5.5 per cent increase compared last with the same period last year. Although north Atlantic flight passenger numbers fell 10.7 per cent last month, there was an increase of 9.1per cent in European scheduled traffic, which forms a large part of Gatwick’s overall flying programme.
14 August 2013 – An independent report has concluded that night flight trials carried out earlier this year brought noise respite to approximately 100,000 people living under the Heathrow flight paths. The Helios Report found that respite trials, backed by both the aviation industry and the residents’ group HACAN, benefited people in South-East and East London as well as many residents of Berkshire. The report prepared for the Flight Evaluation Unit (FEU) at Heathrow Airport by Helios can be found here. The report also said the trial should not continue and that ‘pre-trial assessments should be undertaken to predict likely outcomes to better understand the balance of the likely benefits against the unintended negative outcomes’.
14 August 2013 – Language communication problems in the aviation industry are to be studied by the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). A research project will explore whether command of English amongst some pilots and air traffic controllers, is leading to increased safety risks. The project will explore how existing methods of maintaining clarity can be enhanced to reduce or eliminate language related problems, which can contribute to accidents or serious incidents. The research, funded by the UK Department for Transport under the auspices of the UK State Safety Programme, will be undertaken by Dr Barbara Clark, a linguist and anthropologist specialising in aviation communication and safety at Queen Mary, University of London.
13 August 2013 – Manchester Airport is to regain its direct service to Saudi Arabia next year, according to reports from the Middle East.
14 August 20213 – Two Essex neighbours have reapplied to open a 100-space car park for Southend Airport passengers in their back gardens. Their last application, for a 150-space car park, was refused by Southend Council because of the disruption to neighbours and that decision was upheld on appeal. The pair have reapplied to build a smaller car park on the site.
15 August 2013 – The final piece of funding has been approved for the £290m Manchester Airport Relief Road.
Industry News
11 August 2013 – Russian airline Aeroflot have announced their intention to launch a low cost branch of their airline.
12 August 2013 – Global airline alliances, OneWorld, Star and SkyTeam have said they want to remain at Heathrow Airport.
12 August 2013 – London City Airport is surveying its users through Twitter and Facebook to gauge demand for launching flights to Warsaw.
14 August 2013 – The infrastructure investor Infratil are reported to be trying to sell any remaining stakes in British airports.
Parliamentary News
Updated 7 June 2013 – In November last year, the Commons Transport Select Committee launched an inquiry into the effectiveness of legislation relating to access to transport for disabled people. The final session of the inquiry took place on 3rd June at 4.10pm in Portcullis House. Footage of the meeting can be seen here. Previous sessions have questioned transport providers such as Transport for London and EasyJet; disabled transport users; as well as charities and disabled people’s organisations – including Transport for All. The transcripts of previous sessions are available here.
Government News
12 August 2013 – The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has launched a new project to drive improved compliance with the ATOL regulations amongst travel companies. As the first stage of a longer-term approach, the CAA has teamed up with Leicester City Council to launch a campaign to make sure local businesses are fully compliant with the ATOL regulations. The campaign will also aim to increase local residents’ awareness of the scheme and remind them to check they will receive an ATOL certificate with their booking before handing over their money.
13 August 2013 – Business Minister Michael Fallon has announces the award of one hundred bursaries to employees and graduates to study Masters (MSc) level degrees in aerospace engineering. The bursaries are part of a scheme which sees industry and government each committing £3 million over three years to help recruit 500 people who want to build careers in aerospace, but need financial backing to study at Masters level. The scheme will cover the cost of tuition fees up to a maximum of £9,500. The Minister also announced that the Headquarters of the Aerospace Technology Institute will be based at Cranfield Technology Park in the East of England.
Media News
12 August 2013 – The Scotsman covers the importance of aviation in Scotland.
13 August 2013 – A new infographic shows how airports around the world compare on the social networking site ‘Twitter’.
There will be a reduced parliamentary service during the recess period.