Gatwick Airport Parking

Gatwick airport history

The name "Gatwick" dates back to 1241, and was the name of a manor on the site of today's airport until the 19th century.

In 1891, a racecourse was created at Gatwick beside the London-Brighton railway. A railway station was built which included sidings for horse boxes. The course was popular and held both steeplechase and flat races. During the Great War the course hosted the Grand National.

In the 1920s land adjacent to the racecourse at Hunts Green Farm along Tinsley Green Lane was used as an aerodrome and licenced in August 1930. The Surrey Aero Club was formed in 1930 and used the old Hunts Green farmhouse as the first club house.

The Redwing Aircraft Company bought the aerodrome in 1932 and operated a flying school. The aerodrome was also used for pilots flying in to watch the races. In 1933, the aerodrome was sold to an investor who had designs to run it as an airport. The Air Ministry approved commercial flights from Gatwick the following year, and by 1936, scheduled flights were operating to several destinations on the Continent. A circular terminal called "The Beehive" was built, with a subway connecting it to Gatwick railway station so that passengers could travel from Victoria Station to the aircraft without stepping into the elements. Two fatal accidents in 1936 questioned the safety of the airport, it was also prone to fogs and waterlogged soil. The new subway regularly flooded after heavy rain. As a consequence of the conditions and the need for longer landing areas British Airways Ltd moved out to Croydon Airport in 1937. Gatwick changed back to private flying and also a contract to run a Royal Air Force flying training school. The airport also attracted aircraft repair companies.

Gatwick Airport was requistioned by the Royal Air Force in September 1939 and used for aircraft maintenance. Although night-fighters, an army co-operation squadron and later fighters were based at Gatwick its mainly used as a repair and maintenance facility.

Aircraft maintenance continued after the war, but a number of charter companies (using war-surplus aircraft) started to use Gatwick. Most of the services were cargo flights. The airport still suffered from bad drainage and was little used. In November 1948 the airport owners warned that the airport could be de-requestioned by November 1949 and revert back to private use.

Stansted airport was favoured as London's second airport and Gatwick's future was in doubt. Despite opposition from the neighbouring local authorities the cabinet in 1950 decided that Gatwick was to be designated as an alternative to Heathrow Airport. British European Airways started flying from Gatwick and BEA Helicopters opened a base at the airport. The government announced in July 1952 that the airport was to be developed, and the airport was closed for an extensive (£7.8 million) renovation between 1956 and 1958. On 9 June 1958 Queen Elizabeth II flew into the new airport, in a De Havilland Heron, to perform the offical opening.

The new Gatwick was the world's first airport with a direct railway connection, and was one of the first to use a fully enclosed pier-based terminal design with covered jetbridges connecting waiting areas directly to aircraft.

Throughout the 1950s and 60s passenger figures grew and despite all modifications to the existing terminal and the opening of the satellite pier in 1983, there was still a need for more capacity. In 1988, the North Terminal was completed; it is connected to the south terminal with a rapid transit system. In May 2005 the £110 million pier 6 was opened along with the new sky bridge walkway which linked an extra 11 piers to the north terminal. The highest of its kind, the new bridge spans across an active taxiway at Gatwick, giving departing and arriving passengers at Gatwick views of taxiing aircraft.

This history article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article " London Gatwick Airport".