London Oxford Airport increases business aviation departures by 12.2%

For the year to date, London Oxford Airport increased the number of average daily business aviation departures by 12.2%, year-on-year up to September 2011 according to the latest statistics released by Eurocontrol.

In the Eurocontrol report, London Oxford Airport ranks fifth in the UK with an average 7.8 daily business aviation departures, up from an average 6.9 last year, which represents a growth of 12.2% over the past year. Ahead of Oxford were London Luton (34.2 daily departures) Farnborough Airport (27.5) Biggin Hill (14.5) and London City Airport (8.9). A marked slide by London Stansted positioned it in 8th place behind East Midlands and Bournemouth airports.

“This buoyant business is great news, demonstrating the attraction of our airport to business and VIP travellers. August was surprisingly busy for a holiday month, total GA movements increased by 49% compared with last August. We hope this trend continues for some time as business aviation sees a welcome increase in activity,” said James Dillon-Godfray, Business Development Director at London Oxford Airport.

Latest Generation Radar

London Oxford Airport recently took the decision to install the latest generation radar system at the airport. The primary and secondary (Mode-S, MSSR) surveillance radar system, supplied by Thales with project management by NATS, will enable more efficient transits through local airspace as well as increase the throughput of IFR flight activity. The new system will be fully operational in good time ahead of the 2012 Olympic Games, at which point a further considerable increase in demand for capacity is anticipated.

New Tenants

London Oxford Airport welcomes two new tenants this month: Fly Vectra Limited have taken office space at the airport from which they’ll operate a charter business utilising Citation Excel aircraft. Fly Vectra is currently waiting on its AOC. Cirrustratus Aviation Services has also established itself at Oxford. Cirrustratus is a specialist in the field of private and corporate fractional ownership, with programmes available on aircraft ranging from the 5-seat Piper PA-46 JetProp DLX turboprop to the luxurious Cessna Citation XLS corporate jet.

New State-of-the-art Fire Tender

In August London Oxford Airport took delivery of a brand new fire tender, representing an investment of more than half a million pounds. The tender, supplied by ITURRI Group of Spain has already been introduced into service. “Our goal is to introduce up to three new engines to our fleet within the next five years as part of our ongoing priority to improve Oxford Airport’s safety services,” said Mike Sparrow, Airport Manager. Ground service equipment has also been upgraded during the summer with a new £60,000 Lektro tug suitable for 55-tonne jets.

Pet Travel Scheme

London Oxford Airport is the only General Aviation/Business Aviation Airport for the north or west of London region with full DEFRA (Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs). With a dedicated team trained to process the paperwork and to meet and greet pets and their owners/handlers on arrival to undertake necessary pre-disembarkation checks, London Oxford Airport provides a hassle-free option for anyone wishing to travel with their furry friends. From 01 January 2012, it will become cheaper and easier to travel abroad with pets when new rules are introduced. The UK will harmonise its pet movement rules with the rest of the EU, bringing the UK’s Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) into line with the most recent European-wide pet importation regulations.

Ideal location for London

London Oxford Airport, located outside the congested London Terminal Movement Area (LTMA) is ideally positioned as a viable choice for London. Located just 40 miles from Greater London and with easy access via the UK’s motorway network, Oxford is served by the fastest and least congested of London’s key arterial routes – it’s just an hour’s drive into London’s West End. The airport’s standard opening hours are 06:30 to 22:30, seven days a week and visitors have use of Oxfordjet, the airport’s award-winning VIP FBO terminal.

Rail Service Enhancements

From the start of September 2011, a new Chiltern Railways timetable has dramatically improved journey times to the Oxford area to and from London. Bicester North station, a 15 minute taxi ride from Oxford Airport, has had journey times to London reduced to as little as 41 minutes following extensive improvements and investment by Chiltern. On schedule for 2012, a new rail station between north Oxford city and the airport with a new link via Bicester, will connect the airport to London’s Marylebone station for the first time in just 55 minutes with regular services every 30 minutes. A bus link from that new station to Oxford Airport will take around five minutes once established.