Doncaster Sheffield Airport: Mayor says £138m for rescue plan is 'investment in the future'

The Peel Group shut the airport in November 2022, claiming it had never made a profit due to low passenger numbers, but Doncaster Council is looking to lease it and find a new operator by March.

South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA), which Mr Coppard runs, is set to approve the council’s outline business case next week and agree to offer £138m.

The money will come from the Gainshare fund, which was promised to Doncaster by the government as part of South Yorkshire’s devolution deal.

The council said it will needs the money to secure a lease agreement with Peel Group and offer a new operator millions of pounds in taxpayer-funded subsidies, as there will be “significant reinstatement costs”.

Negotiations with two potential operators are ongoing, but critics are concerned millions of pounds of taxpayer funding will be used to subsidise low-cost flights for holidaymakers during a climate emergency.

Mr Coppard said the Gainshare fund is for economic growth and the money will now be spent on reopening an airport that previously generated £108m a year for the local economy.

He also said Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA) is central to a 10-year plan to establish an aviation and advanced manufacturing hub in Doncaster, known as South Yorkshire Airport City.

“There are costs now associated with reopening the airport, that's sadly inevitable, but those are an investment in the future of not just Doncaster, but South Yorkshire,” he said.

“I think it's the right thing to do. We're doing this in the proper way putting the interests of taxpayers first but also making sure that there are jobs and opportunity and growth right across the whole of South Yorkshire.”

He added: “We are all trying to do this as quickly as we can whilst also trying to do it in the right way. This has to be a balance.

“I know some people across South Yorkshire indeed across the country have been frustrated sometimes that we haven't been able to do this quicker.

“We've had some people in the region who've said ‘just write a blank check to Peel and give them whatever they want’ but I don't think that's the right approach.”

The council has previously said it is keen to agree a deal with a new operator as the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is considering plans to remove the site’s controlled airspace, which is required for commercial flights.

DSA handled a record 1.4m passengers in 2019, but just 403,869 used the airport in the 12 months ending in March 2022. It also recorded an operating loss of £4.3m in that financial year.

However, an assessment conducted for the council last year stated reopening the airport could deliver a £2bn boost for the local economy and support 5,000 direct jobs, if a 30-year expansion plan can be delivered.