Durham Tees Valley Airport

Coordinates: 54°30′33″N 001°25′46″W / 54.50917°N 1.42944°W / 54.50917; -1.42944

Durham Tees Valley Airport
Summary
Airport type Public
Owner Peel Airports Ltd (89%)
Local Authorities (11%)
Operator Durham Tees Valley Airport Ltd.
Serves North East, North Yorkshire
Location Darlington, England
Focus city for
Elevation AMSL 120 ft / 37 m
Coordinates 54°30′33″N 001°25′46″W / 54.50917°N 1.42944°W / 54.50917; -1.42944 (Durham Tees Valley Airport)
Website dtva.co.uk
Map
EGNV
Location in County Durham
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
05/23 2,291 7,516 Asphalt
Statistics (2017)
Passengers 130,911
Passenger change 16-17 Decrease1.1%
Aircraft Movements 19,668
Movements change 16-17 Decrease7.1%
Sources: UK AIP at NATS[1]
Statistics from the UK Civil Aviation Authority[2]

Durham Tees Valley Airport (IATA: MME, ICAO: EGNV) is an international airport located just east of Darlington in County Durham, north-east England, about 10 mi (16 km) south-west of Middlesbrough and 24 mi (39 km) south of Durham. The airport serves the North East and North Yorkshire, and is situated close to the village of Middleton St George in County Durham.

Durham Tees Valley Airport is one of the United Kingdom's smaller airports, offering links to two domestic/European destinations. The airport has a CAA Public Use Aerodrome Licence (number P518) that allows flights for the public transport of passengers and for flying instruction. Originally an RAF Station, the airfield became Teesside International Airport in the 1960s and was renamed Durham Tees Valley Airport in 2004, though it is still commonly known by its previous name.

The majority shareholder in the airport is Peel Airports Ltd which owns 89%, while the remaining 11% is owned by a consortium of local authorities, consisting of Durham County Council and the borough councils of Darlington, Stockton-on-Tees, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool and Redcar and Cleveland.

History

RAF station

The airfield began its life in 1941 as Royal Air Force Station Middleton St. George or RAF Goosepool as known to the locals (though it has never officially held that name). It was home to many Canadian squadrons during WWII. Bombing missions from the station included those to Berlin, Hanover, Kassel, Mannheim and Munich.[3][4] Post war it was home to the English Electric Lightning conversion unit and Javelin Squadrons. The RAF station was closed in 1963 and the airfield was put up for sale.

Teesside International

Passengers boarding a British Midland Viscount 813 in 1987
British Midland Douglas DC-9s at the airport in 1994
Control tower

The former RAF Station and airfield was then developed into a civil airport. The first civilian flight from the airport took place in April 1964 with a Mercury Airlines service to Manchester. Princess Margaretha of Sweden opened the international passenger terminal in 1966.[5]

After flights to Manchester the airport continued to develop a small yet strong network of both scheduled and inclusive tour charter routes. In November 1969 the first flight to London Heathrow was operated by British Midland—this route continued operating until 28 March 2009.

In 1974, the shares were divided between the newly formed Cleveland and Durham County Councils.[6]

1990 saw the one millionth aircraft movement at the airport, in the form of a British Midland service to London Heathrow. In 1996 when Cleveland County Council was abolished, the airport ownership was divided amongst local Borough Councils. Working to a new Business Plan, passenger numbers grew steadily from 1993, up to the sale of the airport in 2002, based upon an expanding holiday charter business.

In 2002 the airport sought a strategic partner to assist with future development and Peel Airports Ltd was selected as the preferred company, taking a 75% stake in the airport with a commitment to invest £20m over the subsequent five years.

Durham Tees Valley Airport

On 21 September 2004 the airport was renamed Durham Tees Valley Airport as part of a major redevelopment plan. The reasons given for the name change were that it placed the airport better geographically as many of the airport's passengers, particularly those from outside the UK, were unfamiliar with the location of Teesside, whilst Durham was better known.

Shortly afterwards, a new access road, terminal front and terminal interior were completed, but the remainder of a planned £56 million expansion and development programme which would have enabled the airport to handle up to 3 million passengers annually never materialised due to falling passenger numbers after 2006.[7][8][9][10] Other minor developments have seen new airfield lighting installed and during 2012, six-figure sums spent revamping the terminal building and renovating one of the World War II-era hangars.

As indicated above, passenger numbers peaked in 2006 when the airport was used by 917,963 passengers, but numbers declined to 161,092 in 2013, the lowest level seen at the airport since 1972.[11]

In 2010, Vancouver Airport Services purchased a controlling 65% stake in Peel Airports Ltd and in December 2011, Peel Airports placed the airport up for sale.[12]

In November 2010 the airport introduced a passenger levy of £6 to curb the airport's losses.[13] Passengers must purchase a ticket from a machine before being allowed to proceed through security.[14] Similar schemes are already in place at other small English airports including Blackpool, Newquay and Norwich.[13] Passenger numbers during 2011 were 15% lower compared to 2010.

On 11 January 2011, Ryanair left the airport after ending service to Alicante Airport, the airline had previously served Dublin Airport, Girona Airport and Rome Ciampino Airport, they decided to leave the airport prior the introduction of the Passenger Facility Fee.[15] On 14 December 2011, Peel Airports Ltd put their 75% stake in the airport up for sale.[12]

On 10 February 2012, The Peel Group purchased their 75% share back under a new subsidiary, Peel Investments (DTVA) Ltd.[16]

On 30 October 2013, the airport announced it would no longer focus on charter flights[17] as part of cost-cutting plans that will see the airport diversify into a business airport. The airport stated it would instead focus on scheduled routes and non-passenger related aviation such as cargo/general aviation. The news is part of a Master Plan for the airport site, including residential and commercial development, released in November 2013 (see section below).

In November 2013, Peel Group released a master plan titled "Master Plan to 2020 and Beyond", covering the period up to 2050. This was followed up with a number of consultation events across the region with both the public and business community, the airport then took all feedback into consideration before releasing a final draft in April 2014.[18][19]

Under the master plan, inclusive tour charter flights were axed,[17] this is due to such flights being known to not make money for airports, with airports instead earning profit from duty free and car park charges etc., but in order to achieve this profit you need flights in large volume which DTVA has never had. The cornerstone of the master plan is a housing estate which will raise up to £30m to be reinvested back into the airport under a 'Section 106' agreement. This resulted in heavy opposition from the local public who fear the airport will eventually be closed to make way for further housing development, whilst supporters claim this is not the case, referencing most other airports which have more housing and often located closer to aprons and runways than what is being proposed at Durham Tees Valley. The houses received outline planning permission on 29 March 2017.[20]

On 18 May 2017, Durham Tees Valley Airport announced significant investment to the airport's terminal facilities. Alongside extensive renovations in the departures area, improved retail services were introduced under the new 'Xpress' brand. The first phase of investment was completed in September 2017, with the second phase starting in Autumn 2017. The airport's Privilege Membership Club also faced improvements for passenger service upgrades.[21]

Later in May 2017, Durham Tees Valley Airport also introduced a new ground handling service with Consort Aviation. Ground handling services are provided for general aviation and military aircraft.[22]

On 7 August 2017, Loganair announced the introduction of two new services to Aberdeen and Norwich. The new service to Aberdeen introduced competition at the airport due to further investment on a route that is already served, including three flights on weekdays along with one flight on Sundays. The new route to Norwich operated six times a week [23] before being dropped in January 2018. The Aberdeen service was also dropped from 16 March 2018.

During November 2017, the airport launched its Flying For The Future campaign to try and build support towards the airport and encourage more people to use the facility.[24]

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Durham Tees Valley Airport:[25]

AirlinesDestinations
BH Air Seasonal: Burgas (begins 18 May 2019)[26]
Enter Air Seasonal charter: Akureyri[27]
Flybe Aberdeen
Seasonal: Jersey
KLM Amsterdam

Other users

General aviation activity at the airport includes Eden Flight Training a fixed wing flying school, as well as Scenic Air Tours North East a pleasure flight company who also offer limited flight training on the side. Engineering is provided by Sycamore Aviation based in Hangar 1 who specialise in aircraft salvage and recycling, also offering maintenance, repair and overhaul ("MRO"), and aircraft parking and storage.[28] Serco operate their International Fire Training Centre, one of the largest in Europe, on the airports south side. There are two air ambulances on site, the Great North Air Ambulance are the traditional example with an emergency response AS365 Dauphin helicopter, whilst IAS Medical specialise in patient and organ transfer using two Beech King Airs, the former is due to move out to a site adjacent to the airport at Urlay Nook.[29] Finally there are two multinational defence contractors based on site, Cobham Aviation Services provide electronic countermeasure training to the MoD using a fleet of Dassault Falcon 20 aircraft and Thales have their calibration and flight inspection subsidiary based with a Beech King Air and Diamond DA42 Twin Star.

Traffic statistics

Passengers and movements

The airport saw strong growth from 1993 to 2006, when passenger numbers peaked at 917,963. Passenger numbers then declined steeply in the subsequent four years due to the financial crisis of 2007–2010. Since 2010, numbers have continued to fall albeit more slowly and appear to be levelling off with a total of 130,911 passengers passing through the airport in 2017. Freight volumes have also slowly declined since 2000, to effectively zero tonnage by 2010.[2] The airport is currently focussing on its "core" business flights which have shown sporadic increases in passenger numbers (e.g. % change from 2013 to 2014).[30]

Durham Tees Valley Airport passenger totals 2000–2017 (thousands)
Updated: 26 March 2018[2]
Traffic statistics at Durham Tees Valley Airport
Year
Passengers
handled
Passengers
handled
% change
Aircraft
movements
Aircraft
movements
% change
Freight
(tonnes)
Freight
% change
2000746,983Steady54,625Steady3,145Steady
2001733,617Decrease 1.758,494Increase 7.02,076Decrease 33.9
2002671,131Decrease 8.552,276Decrease 10.61,016Decrease 51.0
2003704,269Increase 4.951,976Decrease 0.51,092Increase 7.4
2004788,382Increase 11.949,529Decrease 4.7484Decrease 55.6
2005900,035Increase 14.151,714Increase 4.4363Decrease 25.0
2006917,963Increase 1.955,788Increase 7.8459Increase 26.4
2007743,727Decrease 18.957,515Increase 3.0790Increase 72.1
2008654,192Decrease 12.045,310Decrease 21.2290Decrease 63.2
2009289,464Decrease 55.725,208Decrease 44.3356Increase 22.7
2010224,673Decrease 22.320,756Decrease 17.60Decrease 100.0
2011192,410Decrease 14.320,879Increase 0.53Increase nm
2012166,251Decrease 13.517,938Decrease 14.00Decrease 100.0
2013161,092Decrease 3.118,298Increase 2.00Steady
2014142,379Decrease 10.317,940Decrease 1.92Increase nm
2015140,902Decrease 1.018,702Increase 4.20Decrease 100.0
2016132,369Decrease 6.121,162Increase 13.28Increase nm
2017130,911Decrease 1.119,668Decrease 7.14Decrease 50.0

Routes

Busiest routes to and from Durham Tees Valley (2017)[31]
RankAirportTotal
passengers		Change
2016 / 17
1Amsterdam97,833Decrease 5.7%
2Aberdeen17,508Increase 32.4%
3Jersey2,558Increase 21.2%
4Humberside941Increase 771.3%
5Tarbes–Lourdes761Increase 11.3%
6Norwich678Increase 4742.9%

Ground transport

Bus

Arriva North East presently operates bus service No.12 that runs from Hurworth and Darlington to the airport several times per day.[32] The extension of service 12 between Durham Tees Valley Airport and Teesside was withdrawn as a result of cancellation of Stockton Council financial support.

Car

The airport is situated off the A67 and is within easy reach of the A1(M), A19, A66 corridors, it is well signposted from all major routes (sometimes as Teesside Airport). A significant upgrade to complete a fast link direct to the airport from the A66 was completed in 2008.[33]

Rail

The airport has its own railway station, which continues to use the name Teesside Airport. The station is seldom used being remote and located approximately 1 mile (around 15 minutes walk) from the terminal. The station was served by two trains per week until December 2017 when the service was reduced to just one train every Sunday.[34] The station is not mentioned on the airport's website.[35]

Dinsdale railway station in the nearby village of Middleton St George is the closest station with regular passenger services.

A new station was planned to be built closer to the terminal (within 350m), as part of the Tees Valley Metro project.[36] However, the project has now been officially abandoned. The Peel Group made its call for infrastructure improvements days after a report showed Teesside Airport station served just 14 passengers in a whole year.[37]

Taxi

Taxis are available directly outside the airport terminal.

References

  1. ↑ "Durham Tees Valley - EGNV". Nats-uk.ead-it.com. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 "UK airport data 2017: Tables 3, 9 and 13.pdf". UK Civil Aviation Authority. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  3. ↑ Personal letters from Sgt A J Hodgkins and newspapaer obituary.
  4. ↑ "Hodgkins, John (Sgt)". poemsplease.me. 3 October 1943. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
  5. ↑ "FoDTVA History". Friends of Durham Tees Valley Airport Website. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
  6. ↑
  7. ↑ "Airport's £1.3m revamp approved". BBC News. bbc.co.uk. 6 December 2006. Retrieved 10 March 2007.
  8. ↑ "Durham Tees Valley Airport oppose new hotel plans". UK Airport News. UK Airport News. 27 July 2007. Archived from the original on 12 October 2007. Retrieved 16 September 2007.
  9. ↑ "Durham Tees Valley Airport hotel plans approved". UK Airport News. UK Airport News. 2 August 2007. Archived from the original on 12 October 2007. Retrieved 16 September 2007.
  10. ↑ "War of words over new Durham Tees Valley Airport hotel". UK Airport News. UK Airport News. 4 August 2007. Archived from the original on 12 October 2007. Retrieved 16 September 2007.
  11. ↑ Passenger, freight and mail volumes include both domestic and international, transit, arriving and departing counterparts.
  12. 1 2 Cook, Paul (14 December 2011). "Durham Tees Valley Airport up for sale". The Northern Echo. Archived from the original on 16 November 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2011.
  13. 1 2 "Passengers charged to use Durham Tees Valley Airport". BBC News. 15 October 2010.
  14. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 29 November 2010. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  15. ↑ "Ryanair axe last route from Durham Tees Valley". UK Airport News. UK Airport News. 20 December 2012. Archived from the original on 7 May 2012. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  16. ↑ "Durham Tees Valley Airport passes back into Peel Group ownership". The Northern Echo. 10 February 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  17. 1 2 "Durham Tees Valley Airport confirms end of charter flights". The Northern Echo. 30 October 2013. Retrieved 31 October 2013.
  18. ↑ "Master Plan to 2020 and Beyond".
  19. ↑ "Durham Tees Valley Airport plan promises 4,000 jobs". BBC News. 17 November 2013.
  20. ↑ "Homes plan backed for loss-making airport". BBC News. 29 March 2017.
  21. ↑ "Latest news". Dtva.co.uk. 18 May 2017. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  22. ↑ "New ground handling service takes off". www.DTVA.co.uk. Retrieved 24 December 2017.
  23. ↑ "Latest news". Dtva.co.uk. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  24. ↑ "Durham Tees Valley Airport – Flying for the future". Dtva.info. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  25. ↑ "Arrivals and departures - Durham Tees Valley Airport".
  26. ↑ "Airport welcomes Balkan Holidays flight programme".
  27. ↑ "Beint flug frá Bretlandi til Akureyrar næsta vetur". Akureyrarbær. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  28. ↑ "Sycamore Aviation".
  29. ↑ "Plan for new Great North Air Ambulance Service base ready for take off". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
  30. ↑ "Durham Tees Valley Airport 'moving in right direction' as business passengers rise 3%". Middlesbrough Gazette Live. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  31. ↑ "Airport Data 2017". UK Civil Aviation Authority. Tables 12.1.pdf and 12.2.pdf. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  32. ↑ "ArrivaBus website: 12 - Hurworth to Middleton St George". 7 August 2017.
  33. ↑ "Airport welcomes road improvement". BBC News. 5 February 2007. Retrieved 10 March 2007.
  34. ↑ "At England's Loneliest Rail Station, a Train Comes Just Once a Week". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
  35. ↑ "Welcome to the north's forgotten railway station". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  36. ↑ "Tees Valley Metro" (PDF). Darlington Transport Forum. 6 October 2008. Retrieved 15 September 2009.
  37. ↑ "Transport hub needed at Durham Tees Valley if passengers are to return, airport owners claim". Northern Echo. 22 May 2013.

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