Bumpy journey ahead at Durham Tees Valley Airport (From The Northern Echo)

Bumpy journey ahead at Durham Tees Valley Airport

9:36pm Friday 10th February 2012 in Peter Barron By Peter Barron

IT is, of course, good news that a deal has been announced today to secure the immediate future of Durham Tees Valley Airport.

Fears that it could be placed in administration have undermined confidence in the Tees Valley and I welcome the end of that period of uncertainty.

However, it is clear that the airport cannot continue in its present loss-making form. Something has to change.

There has been disappointment over the failure of the Vantage Airport Group to back up the promises it made when it bought a 65 per cent stake in Peel Airports Ltd from the Peel Group in June last year.

It is hard to see what genuine efforts were made to secure new routes and market the airport properly.

Peel Group has now decided to buy back control but clear questions remain over what the future holds. Confidence needs to be restored with a clear public vision of Durham Tees Valley's long-term viability as a commercial airport.

The Peel Group is a development company and its strategic planning director Peter Nears has been quick to point to the importance of being able to develop the land around the airport.

"We need to do this in association with the local authority stakeholders," he says in today's Northern Echo. In other words, the six North-East councils holding minority shares have some challenging decisions ahead.

How can they balance the importance of retaining the airport while making sure that land development does not have a damaging impact on neighbouring towns.

There is bound to be turbulence ahead.