Manston Airport in Kent could reopen by 2029 after RiverOak Strategic Partners bought it for £16.5million. The airport has been abandoned for years, with its last flight departing in 2014. The site will initially open for cargo operations, but commercial flights are also expected to be introduced after the £750million renovation.

A recent public consultation gave locals the chance to share their thoughts regarding proposed flight paths and the airspace redesign. Tony Freudmann from RiverOak Strategic Partners said: “This consultation is an important step in our ambition to reopen Manston Airport, representing a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver new runway capacity to support the UK air cargo market and to transform the economic landscape in Kent.

“Once reopened, Manston will help the UK trade across the globe, importing vital and time-sensitive goods, including fresh fruit and medical supplies, providing air freight operators with a realistic alternative to the overcrowded London airports.

"It will ease the considerable road congestion caused by lorries carrying freight through the Channel Tunnel to European airports and improve resilience and boost economic growth and jobs in Kent.”

Manston Airport is a former RAF base that first opened in 1916. It then became a commercial airport in the 60s when it was renamed Kent International Airport. It officially closed in 2014 due to massive financial losses.

The aerodrome has since been used as a filming location and lorry park during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Manston Airport is considered a unique airport due to its incredibly long and wide runway, which was built as an emergency landing spot for damaged bombers during World War 2.

It also features three air traffic control towers, and during World War 1, it was the only airfield in the country with underground hangars to protect aircraft.