asked the Secretary of State for Trade (1) if he will tabulate, in relation to Hum airport, Christchurch, the following information relating to use of the airport runway with the present safety restrictions, and with those safety restrictions removed in the event of the diversion of Parley Lane as proposed by the airport management committee (a) availability to various types of aircraft unladen, (b) availability to various types fully laden, and (c) availability to various types partially laden, indicating relevant restrictions ;(2) what planning control he possesses to ensure that the status of category D airport is not altered by planning decisions to which he is not a party ;(3) what consultations he has had with the Civil Aviation Authority concerning proposals to enlarge the runway capacity of Hum airport, Christchurch ; and if he will make a statement ;(4) by what percentage the noise footprint at Hurn airport, Christchurch, will be increased if the runway capacity is increased in accordance with current proposals ;(5) what monitoring activities he undertakes to check that alterations to runway capacity at airports does not result in effective reclassification of airports from the status which he has decided is appropriate.
The proposal by Dorset county council to divert Parley Lane, which runs close to the end of the main runway at Hurn airport, is aimed primarily at improving the safety of motorists in the event of aircraft overshooting or undershooting the runway. I am advised by the Civil Aviation Authority that extension of the safety area would enable certain aircraft already using the airport, including BAC111s, Comets and Boeing 737s, to operate at full load or with reduced weight restrictions, depending on climatic conditions. However, it would not affect runway capacity, which is measured in terms of aircraft movements.The classification of Hurn as a D category airport broadly reflects the future role it is expected to fulfil. Any proposal by the airport management for loan sanction to extend the runway would be considered by my Department in the light of the conclusions in the White Paper on airports policy. I am not aware of any such proposals. As regards aircraft noise, the diversion of Parley Lane is not expected to affect the forecasts made in 1976 in the consultative document "Airport Strategy for Great Britain" in relation to the natural growth of traffic.