"Boris Island" moves a step closer as Thames estuary airport plans are clarified

Thames estuary airport plans clarified

‘Britannia Airport’ The new destination for international travel.

Further details of how a Thames estuary airport would operate have been unveiled by the consortium behind London Britannia Airport, the proposed six-runway project formerly dubbed the ‘Boris Island’ scheme.

Thames Estuary Research and Development (Testrad), the consortium behind the proposals, now claims the new facility could be built within seven years at a cost of £47bn.

The consortium has suggested part of the capital cost of the new airport could be defrayed by the development value generated by closing Heathrow and developing that part of west London as a new borough (the London Borough of Heathrow) offering a technopolis centre for regional high technology enterprise, new homes and parkland for 300,000 people and direct and indirect employment for over 200,000.

The consortium said the runway configuration would allow three or four aircraft to operate at the same time, 24-hours-a-day in all weather conditions.

Logistics operations would be at Sheerness and the A249 would be upgraded to provide a new M2 connection.

Passenger check-in and arrival terminals would be at Ebbsfleet, next to the high-speed rail link, and at St Pancras International in central London.

Testrad said check-in terminals would be linked to the airport by high-speed rail tunnels and the estuary airport would be "car free with no private car access".

The consortium has stressed the island airport would help rebalance London’s development map and boost regeneration on the eastern flank of the capital.

The Government-appointed but independent Davies airport commission is currently reviewing potential sites for more airport capacity in the South East, including additional runways at Gatwick and Heathrow and is due to report its interim findings next month.

Find out more about the Testrad plans (PDF).


Roger Milne
14 November 2013

Boris Island London's Proposed Floating Airport

Proposals have been unveiled for London's new London Britannia Airport and involve four floating runways tethered to the sea bed, reports BBC News.

This floating airport is designed by architects Gensler, and would allow for expansion up to six runways. "The airport can be quickly manufactured in the ship yards and steel works across the UK and can be floated by sea and positioned in the Estuary," project director Ian Mulcahey told the BBC. "This isn't a London airport, it is a global airport, designed, manufactured and built in the UK."

According to the Daily Mail, the airport--nicknamed "Boris Island" for London's mayor--would be connected to London by high-speed rail. Passengers would check in and arrive at terminals on land, two to the north and south of the estuary and one in Central London between Canary Wharf and the Olympic Park.

The airport's location in the estuary would also cut down on noise complaints, notes News.com.au. And, its location on water would allow for easy shifting of the runways in the event of, say, wind change. As for the future of Heathrow, the Daily Mail posits that "the Gensler scheme would see Heathrow Airport close and become a new eco-city and 'the largest urban expansion project in Europe', with housing for around 300,000 people."

London is currently locked in a heated debate over whether or not to add a third runway to the already strained Heathrow Airport. In June, Prime Minister David Cameron refused to rule out the option of adding a runway. This month, a third runway consultation process was launched, allowing advocates to make their case.