Gatwick second runway decision expected

A decision is expected later on whether Gatwick airport can expand to two simultaneously functioning runways. The airport wants to move its northern runway, which is currently only used for taxiing or as a back up, and make it operational by the turn of the decade. Gatwick is Europe's busiest single runway airport, with more than 40m passengers using it last year. If permission is granted, work would start almost immediately, but MPs, local authorities and residents are strongly opposed. The Transport Secretary, Heidi Alexander, will announce her decision in a written ministerial statement to Parliament later. On Tuesday she told industry leaders she had "no intention of clipping anyone's wings," and said aviation was good for growth. "I am not some sort of flight-shaming eco warrior. I love flying – I always have," she said during a speech at the annual dinner of trade body Airlines UK in London. Gatwick managers say that with 55 take-offs and landings in a busy hour, the airport is "full". Being able to use both runways could increase the number of departures by 50,000 a year by the end of the 2030s, according to Gatwick. It says some 30,000 of those flights are planned to depart from the north runway which will only be used for departures and not landings.<br/>