Thames Estuary is airport future

Sir, We endorse your leading article (“Blue sky thinking”, Mar 31) on the shortcomings of UK airports policy for London and the South East.

We support the Government’s refusal to promote a third Heathrow runway (and new runways at Stansted or Gatwick raise similar environmental concerns), but lack of runway capacity will strangle one of the UK’s leading industries (1.8 per cent of GDP), and force the transfer of business to foreign airports.

A Thames airport could provide four runways to compete directly with Frankfurt, Charles de Gaulle and Schiphol.

You overstate the geographical disadvantages of the Thames Estuary proposal, which would be only 8 minutes further by rail from the City of London than Heathrow, and far better placed for rail connections to North Europe. Similarly, the costs are not as disadvantageous, when the benefits of the new infrastructure, including flood protection and energy generation, are taken into account. The social and environmental advantages are obvious, and there are huge opportunities for a Thames airport to lead regeneration along the estuary from London through north Kent and south Essex. For these reasons we will continue to favour a Thames airport as the only viable and environmentally acceptable option which also provides for industry and passengers for the long term.