Twente Airport explained at length to the court in its plea why it would be perfectly reasonable for the Inspectorate to grant Twente Airport an exemption so that these turnpads would not have to be constructed.
Efficient and safe handling at Twente Airport
At Twente Airport, all air traffic reports at least 24 hours in advance:
- Quiet airport, so air traffic can be planned well in.
- No unannounced air traffic
- Larger aircraft only occasionally
=> No need to clear the runway quickly for other (new) traffic.
Larger aircraft do not make a turn at Twente Airport, but are pushed back to the apron with an (electric) Tow-Truck after landing.
=> Controlled, fast and safe!
Turnpads at Twente Airport
- No added value for flight safety
- Construction of turnpads involves unnecessary extra costs: between 2.3 and 2.5 million
No exemption means loss of income:
- Lost parking revenue
- Multiple 'no' votes on applications for long-term parking of larger aircraft because of inability to guarantee departure of aircraft.
Large aircraft parking market:
- One of the sources of income for airport operations
- Contributes to Twente Airport's ambition as a test airport for making aviation more sustainable. All this within extremely safe conditions.
Ruling
The board is looking forward to the court ruling, which is expected in January next year at the earliest. At this time, we are not speculating on a possible outcome, but are confident that we have done everything possible to clearly communicate the reasonableness of our request to the court.
