Cardiff Airport

History of Cardiff Airport

The history of Cardiff International Airport goes back almost 60 years to the early 1940’s when the Air Ministry requisitioned land in the rural Vale of Glamorgan to establish a wartime satellite aerodrome and training base for RAF Spitfire pilots. Construction work commenced in 1941, and the airfield officially began use on 7 April 1942 when it was taken over by No 53 Operational Training Unit. The commercial potential of the runway was noticed in the early 1950’s by Aer Lingus, who started a service to Dublin in 1952. A new Terminal Building followed, along with flights to France, Belfast and Cork. An escalation in holiday charter business resulted in passenger throughput exceeding 100,000 in 1962.

In 1965, management of the Airport was transferred from the Ministry of Defence to Glamorgan County Council. With the first transatlantic flight in 1971, further investment led to the upgrading of the current Terminal Building and Control Tower. The main runway was doubled in length to 7,000 ft, which allowed the airport to accommodate wide bodied aircraft.

Local government reorganisation in the 1970’s resulted in the transfer of the Airport's ownership to the three County Councils of South, Mid and West Glamorgan, the successors of the former Glamorgan County Council. The increase in the popularity of charter traffic to the Mediterranean saw passenger levels soar to 250,000 in the early 1980’s. New links were also established between Cardiff and Canada.

1986 saw another extension of 750 ft to the runway, costing in the region of £1 million. This attracted more business to the Airport in the form of new generation jet aircraft. Development of transatlantic links were made with charter flights to Florida, in addition to the already established links with Canada. The runway extension, enabling the Airport to handle 747 jumbo jets, was instrumental in attracting the British Airways Maintenance facility to Cardiff International Airport. The maintenance hangar is one of the largest in the world and provides heavy airframe and engineering maintenance for the British Airways fleet and other carriers.

The early 1990’s saw a significant boost to the Airport’s scheduled services when Manx Airlines established their European Air Route Hub at Cardiff. Manx Airlines offered daily services to key business destinations within Europe and the UK. Consequently scheduled passenger levels exceeded 100,000 for the first time in a single year.

In 1992 passenger numbers increased by an impressive 22% to 743,219 by the end of the 1992/3 financial year. Additional charter and scheduled services contributed to the rise in traffic, as did major increases in aircraft capacity. The Airport’s Golden Jubilee Anniversary was celebrated in 1992 and a programme of special events to mark 50 years of flying from Cardiff, culminated in a Royal visit by Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra, who unveiled a commemorative plaque.

A series of major expansion projects, designed to boost the capacity of the Terminal Building and enhance overall operational efficiency, started in early 1993. The projects included re-development of the landside forecourt area, expansion and modernisation of the International Departures Lounge, plus alteration of the roadway access to the Terminal, and construction of a new security access point.

In August 1994, well ahead of traffic forecasts, the Airport celebrated 1 million passengers for the first time in its history.

In April 1995, due to planned Local Government re-organisation in Wales, the Airport Company was privatised, with shares being sold to Welsh property and development firm, TBI Plc. Since the privatisation, Cardiff International Airport has flourished, ranking as one of the UK’s most successful regional airports.

About Cardiff Airport

Located just 12 miles from Cardiff City Centre and 10 miles from the M4 motorway, Cardiff International Airport handles 1.5 million passengers a year and is one of the UK's most successful regional airports.

Since its privatisation in 1995 by TBI plc, Cardiff International Airport has become known by continued passenger growth, an enhanced air route network, plus a multi-million pound expansion programme to the terminal building.

As well as an extensive range of leisure services throughout Europe, the Mediterranean and North America, daily scheduled services operate direct from Cardiff to thirteen key destinations across the UK and Europe.

Direct scheduled services also result in fast onward connections to or from many worldwide destinations from major European hub airports such as Amsterdam, Paris and Brussels. Passengers are able to transfer quickly to Cardiff from a vast network of international flights, and through-ticketing and baggage arrangements on many flights further enhance travel convenience.

First class terminal facilities, including an extensive range of catering, retail and public services now exist at Cardiff International Airport, following a major refurbishment programme. The Airport is home to one of the largest Tax and Duty Free shops of any UK regional airports, offering an extensive range of tax-free goods to all passengers, irrespective of destination.

http://www.cbicardiffairport.com