By Paul Robinson
THE new owner of Leeds Bradford Airport today unveiled an expansion masterplan and said: "It's time to go up a league."
As reported in later editions of last night's Yorkshire Evening Post, Leeds Bradford has been sold for just over £145m to private equity group Bridgepoint.
And bosses celebrated clinching the deal with a pledge to spend £70m on improvements.
They want to:
Introduce an extra 20 scheduled routes over the next five years;
Revamp the existing terminal building and develop food, drink and other retail facilities;
More than double annual passenger numbers to six million by 2015.
Leeds Bradford's new chairman is Sir Graham Hall, the former Yorkshire Electricity chief executive who led Bridgepoint's successful bid for the business.
He said today: "Work can now begin on taking our airport up a league in every sense. It is a key asset for our region."
No details were available today on which places could join the list of destinations served by Leeds Bradford. It currently operates 40 scheduled routes.
Bridgepoint has bought the airport from five West Yorkshire councils – Leeds, Bradford, Wakefield, Kirklees and Calderdale.
The equity group, which was announced as the preferred bidder in the sale at the start of last month, was involved in the 1997 privatisation of Birmingham Airport.
In a joint statement, the councils said: "The price paid for Leeds Bradford is a clear vote of confidence in its potential and the economic prosperity of the region."
Leeds City Council has raked in nearly £60m from the sell-off, thanks to the 40 per cent share it had in the airport. It is promising to spend the windfall on as-yet-unspecified projects which will be of long-term benefit to the city.
The airport remains under Leeds's planning control, while a clause in the sale deal protects its name from being changed.
Council chiefs decided sell the site last year. They said it would not receive the level of investment needed to keep pace with its regional rivals if it stayed in the hands of the public sector.
THE new owner of Leeds Bradford Airport today unveiled an expansion masterplan and said: "It's time to go up a league."
As reported in later editions of last night's Yorkshire Evening Post, Leeds Bradford has been sold for just over £145m to private equity group Bridgepoint.
And bosses celebrated clinching the deal with a pledge to spend £70m on improvements.
They want to:
Introduce an extra 20 scheduled routes over the next five years;
Revamp the existing terminal building and develop food, drink and other retail facilities;
More than double annual passenger numbers to six million by 2015.
Leeds Bradford's new chairman is Sir Graham Hall, the former Yorkshire Electricity chief executive who led Bridgepoint's successful bid for the business.
He said today: "Work can now begin on taking our airport up a league in every sense. It is a key asset for our region."
No details were available today on which places could join the list of destinations served by Leeds Bradford. It currently operates 40 scheduled routes.
Bridgepoint has bought the airport from five West Yorkshire councils – Leeds, Bradford, Wakefield, Kirklees and Calderdale.
The equity group, which was announced as the preferred bidder in the sale at the start of last month, was involved in the 1997 privatisation of Birmingham Airport.
In a joint statement, the councils said: "The price paid for Leeds Bradford is a clear vote of confidence in its potential and the economic prosperity of the region."
Leeds City Council has raked in nearly £60m from the sell-off, thanks to the 40 per cent share it had in the airport. It is promising to spend the windfall on as-yet-unspecified projects which will be of long-term benefit to the city.
The airport remains under Leeds's planning control, while a clause in the sale deal protects its name from being changed.
Council chiefs decided sell the site last year. They said it would not receive the level of investment needed to keep pace with its regional rivals if it stayed in the hands of the public sector.
