LONDON CITY AIRPORT 30 Years Serving the Capital 30 YEARS of SERVING LONDON 14 Mins to Canary Wharf 22 Mins to Bank 25 Mins to Westminster
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LONDON CITY AIRPORT 30 years serving the capital 30 YEARS OF SERVING LONDON 14 mins to Canary Wharf 22 mins to Bank 25 mins to Westminster • Voted Best Regional Airport in the world* • Only 20 mins from terminal entrance to departure lounge • On arrival, just 15 minutes from plane to train LONDON CITY AIRPORT 30 years serving the capital Malcolm Ginsberg FAST, PUNCTUAL AND ACTUALLY IN LONDON. For timetables and bookings visit: *CAPA Regional Airport of the Year Award - 27/10/2016 londoncityairport.com 00814_30th Anniversary Book_2x 177x240_Tower Bridge.indd 1 26/06/2017 13:22 A Very Big Thank You My most sincere gratitude to Sharon Ross for her major contribution to the editorial and Alan Lathan, once of Jeppesen Airway Manuals, for his knowledge of the industry and diligence in proofing this tome. This list is far Contents from complete but these are some of the people whose reminiscences and memories have helped me compile a book that is, I hope, a true reflection of a remarkable achievement. London City Airport – LCY to its friends and the travelling public – is a great success, and for London too. My grateful thanks go to all the contributors to this book, and in particular the following: Andrew Scott and Liam McKay of London City Airport; and the retiring Chief Foreword by Sir Terry Morgan CBE, Chairman of London City Airport 7 Executive Declan Collier, without whose support the project would never have got off the ground. Now and Then 8 Tom Appleton Ex-de Havilland Canada Sir Philip Beck Ex-John Mowlem & Co Plc (Chairman) Introduction by Malcolm Ginsberg 9 Pat Byrne CityJet Executive Chairman Prince Philip and London City Airport 10 Alison Chambers Emerald Media Dermot Desmond Previous owner of London City Airport The Airport Directors 12 David Dorman Dorway Public Relations on behalf of BAe Systems 1 Reflections on London City Airport 13 Guy Douglas Embraer John Garwood Canary Wharf Plc 2 History of the London Docklands 23 Pandora George Bullet PR for Royal Docks Management Authority 3 The London Docklands Development Corporation 29 Roy Griffins Ex-London City Airport (Chairman) Ian Harbison Air Transport Publications 4 A Short History of Brymon Airways 33 Stuart Innes Ex-London Docklands Development Corporation 5 London City Airways (Eurocity Express) 39 Mike Johnson Ex-Brymon Airways Alan Lathan Ex-Jeppesen 6 The Docklands Light Railway 43 Mike Luddy The Royal Docks Ltd 7 Canary Wharf 49 David Peglar ExCeL London James Rees ExCeL London 8 ExCeL London 55 Bob Schumacher Ex-Eurocity Express (now with United Airlines) 9 The Airport Timeline 61 And finally, I would like to thank my wife Linda who has followed my interest in London City Airport from the very 1981–1986 64 beginning and for her patience with me while I was creating this book. Harvey Elliott 67 Photographs Many thanks to Dave Williams of Express Photo Services who has recorded LCY from the beginning, for over 20 Feature from The Times 5 November 1987 68 years, and has been very generous with his time in helping us locate photographs for this book. Also Vic Abbott, The Historic Collection 70 a NATS control tower engineer, also with the airport virtually from the beginning, and a keen snapper too; plus veteran photographers Mike Hooks, Peter March and Barry Wheeler. 1987–2017 London City Airport and World 72 We are indebted to The Times for the use of its extensive photo library for the Timeline chapter and London 10 The Aircraft 133 City Airport for its archives. Our thanks also to the Docklands Museum, the Royal Docks Group and Royal Wharf for the map on pages 184/5; and the Bruce McClaren Foundation in New Zealand who managed to find an image of British Aerospace BAe 146 and Avro RJ 134 Chris Amon and his pal Bill Bryce. Brazil – Aviation and Embraer 139 Malcolm Ginsberg Canada – de Havilland and Bombardier 143 The AIso Rans by Ian Harbison 148 Published by Business Travel News Ltd 2017 All rights reserved. With the exception of quoting brief 11 A Heavy SWISS Landing 151 passages for the purposes of review, no part of this PO Box 758, Edgware HA8 4QF, United Kingdom publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, 12 New York from London City Airport 155 www.btnews.co.uk or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, It’s All About Retail 160 mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise with- Copyright 2017 © Malcolm Ginsberg out prior written permission from the Publisher. 13 London City Airport Private Jet Centre 161 ISBN 978-1-900438-07-0 The information in this book is true and complete 14 City Airport Development Plan 165 to the best of our knowledge. All recommendations Produced by Forty Editorial Services Ltd are made without any guarantee on the part of the 15 London City Airport Consultative Committee 169 Printed at Short Run Press, Exeter, United Kingdom Authors or Publisher, who also disclaim any liability London City Airport Winter 2017–2018 Destinations 172 incurred in connection with the use of this data or Distributed by Crécy Publishing Ltd specific details. 16 Corporate Social Responsibility 173 www.crecy.co.uk All Internet site information provided was correct 17 The Future of the Royals 177 when received from the Authors. The Publisher can accept no responsibility for this information becoming The Top 20 Routes 2016 183 incorrect. LOVE Foreword FLEETSMART Sir Terry Morgan CBE Uncovering new opportunities and achieving profitability demands a creative mindset. At Embraer we understand the many challenges airlines face to reach their goals, Chairman of London City Airport so we have created a solution that adds more to your bottom line - FleetSmart. Based on 3 performance pillars, Design Smart, Experience Smart and Business Smart, FleetSmart is helping operators sustain profitability and outperform their rivals. I was delighted to be asked, and to accept the Those challenges have been balanced in equal FLEETSMART position as Chairman of London City Airport in measure with opportunities, so much so that March 2017. The airport, in my view, is the heart- since the previous milestone of the 20th anni- beat of business flying in London. versary in 2007, the number of passengers using The fact that we are celebrating the 30th the airport has almost doubled, most recently to FLEETSMART anniversary of London City Airport is down to just over 4.5 million in 2016. FLEETSMART the dedication of its staff, past and present, who Looking to the future, what I see now for C make the airport tick and help us deliver what LCY is potential; significant potential for the M embraercommercialaviation.com I consider to be an industry leading customer airport, and across the whole of East London, Y experience for our passengers. which is experiencing incredible regeneration. My first personal interaction with London In the coming decade East London will be at the CM City Airport was just six years ago when I centre of London’s growth, its new homes, its MY took a flight to Glasgow. LCY was a busy ter- new jobs, its new residents. And thanks to our CY minal but I was struck by the no fuss approach City Airport Development Programme, LCY CMY to transferring me through check-in, security will play a key role in supporting that growth, and boarding the aircraft. No fuss to me as a attracting investment and connecting London K passenger, but obviously based on attention to businesses globally. As it once served Canary detail by the airport. I have travelled through Wharf, I see the LCY of the future continuing to LCY a number of times since then, always on connect our traditional business hubs, but also business and every time the airport is busy. I look emerging ones in Stratford, Barking, Greenwich, forward to my much closer relationship with Bexley and beyond. the airport as we continue our growth plans And as we grow, we’ll do so responsibly, con- based on a significant investment in new assets tinuously innovating so we balance the impact of but maintaining attention to the needs of those our operations with the benefits of employment using the airport. and economic growth. We will continue to invest As you’ll read in this book, it has not always in our communities so the people and school been easy for LCY – an airport in the Dock- children of East London can take advantage of lands was a bold and pioneering concept, and it the opportunities we create. has had to fight for its existence and its market It’s an exciting time to be part of London City share. I would like to use this foreword to say a Airport. On behalf of myself, the shareholders personal thank you to Mowlem Construction, and management team I’d like to thank you for under the steerage of Sir Philip Beck, and previous your support and custom. We now look to the Chairmen, including Roy Griffins, who readied future and to building an airport that not only the ground for growth and the dynamic business meets your expectations, but exceeds them. you see and use today. July 2017 Foreword • 7 Now and Then Introduction 30 Years of Travel and London City Airport 2017 1987 March 1982. London This book will take you through the history was its usual self. Wet, of what is now London City Airport and still the Canadian-led consortium owners John Mowlem & Co dull and miserable. I was only active purpose-built UK airport built since Newham Council London Docklands Development Corporation in my then City office.