Alistair Welch, managing director of the airport, said that the timescale for the GBP30 million ($47.8 million) project was in place. If the Secretary of State goes with Southend Council’s recommendation to approve the 300 meters extension, then work will begin immediately on the airport. It is planned to develop the airport into a fully functioning regional airport in place in time for the 2012 Olympics.
The first development work to take place would be 700 meters of new road to replace links diverted from Eastwoodbury Lane. Work on the runway extension will only start once the ‘road network’ is completed in early 2011 and is expected to take six months to build. New navigation aids for aircraft will also be installed during the construction program to improve safety and security on site.
