Five year plan for Prestwick Airport to return to private sector

Management at Prestwick Airport plan to return it to private ownership within the next five years, a report has revealed.

The Scottish Government stepped in to save the South Ayrshire airport from closure in November 2013, buying it for £1.

Initial estimates proposed £21.3 million of loans would be needed to keep the airport - officially known as Glasgow Prestwick Airport - going.

The figure rose to £39.6 million in a revised business plan published the following year.

The executive team has published its five-year strategic plan to 2022, stating it believes passenger numbers have bottomed out'' and are now rising, and losses are less severe than predicted.

The document was drawn up following the appointment of Ron Smith as chief executive officer in May 2016 and states the aim in the next five years is to return the business to private ownership with a sustainable future as an airport''.

Mr Smith said: The picture for Glasgow Prestwick Airport is a positive one - we believe our passenger numbers have bottomed out and are on the up again, cargo income is consistent in spite of changes in the wider market, military income is growing, property occupancy are at an all-time high and early indications for the last financial year show that our losses are less than predicted.

The turnaround will be challenging and will take time, but it has started and this plan will build upon this.

The Scottish Government has always stated that they would like to return the business to the private sector and this is a fundamental pillar of our plan.

We are working to make the business an attractive prospect for a private investor to come in and build upon this strategy - someone that can bring in additional funds to upgrade our infrastructure and facilities and attract even more business.

If we are able to do this, we could speed up our turnaround.''

Airport chairman Andrew Miller said the plan sets out how to make Prestwick a profitable and sustainable airport for generations to come''.

He added: There has been a significant amount of analysis and research in establishing a sustainable business plan that has been challenged and improved throughout its development, and as a result we now have something that is realistic and realisable.''

Passenger figures are predicted to rise for the first time in a decade in 2016/17 to 620,000 and plans to boost the airport's fortunes include applying for a licence to become the UK's first spaceport.

Passenger figures are predicted to rise for the first time in a decade in 2016/17 to 620,000 and plans to boost the airport's fortunes include applying for a licence to become the UK's first spaceport.

A Transport Scotland spokesman said the airport is operated at arm's length from the Scottish Government and welcomed the new strategic plan.

He said: We want Glasgow Prestwick Airport to grow into the successful and vibrant business we know it can be, but have always acknowledged that there is no quick fix.

However, there are a number of opportunities for the airport's management team to build on, including increasing freight and passenger traffic, fixed-base operations and it is very well-placed to provide world-class facilities for the UK Spaceport programme.

We have been very clear from the outset of this process that our investment in the airport is on a commercial basis in the form of loan funding. This attracts a market rate of interest in line with state aid rules.

A report from Audit Scotland confirmed that we are highly likely to generate a return on our investment that is higher than the current rate of interest we are charging the airport.''