LONDON CITY AIRPORT GUIDE (LCY)

QUICK FACTS Name: London City Airport IATA Code: LCY ICAO Code: EGLC Opened: 1982 Terminals: 1 Runways: 1 Destinations served: 80+ Passengers: 2.8m (2009)

HISTORY

The concept of an airport that would service the London docklands area was first conceived by the LDDC’s (London Docklands Development Corporation) Chief Executive Officer, Reg Ward, who together with the Chairman of the John Mowlem and Company PLC, Philip Beck, put together a proposal for the London City Airport parking and airport’s design and development. In mid-1982, in order to prove the feasibility and workability of the airport proposal, Captain Harry Gee brought his aircraft – a de Havilland Canada Dash 7 – to a safe and successful landing on Heron Quays, a portion of the London Docklands’ West India Docks.

Towards the end of 1982, the LDDC conducted a poll designed to test the general opinion of the public living in close proximity to the proposed flight hub. The results of this study showed that the majority of London citizens were in favour of the development of the London City Airport parking and airfield and so Mowlem & Co went ahead and submitted the design plans for approval.
 
Planning permission for the airfield, terminal building and London City Airport parking was granted in 1986 and shortly afterwards, construction on the project began with the Prince of Wales, Prince Charles, laying the first foundation brick himself. Although it was officially opened in November 1987 by Queen Elizabeth 2nd, the first non-commercial plane to land at the airport did so earlier that year, in May.

The following year of 1988 was the airport’s first complete year of operation with over 133,000 passengers making their way from the London City Airport parking facilities into the airport terminal building to embark upon destinations both domestic (Plymouth and Rotterdam) and international (Amsterdam and Paris). By 1993, numbers were up to 245,000 and the improvement of the London City Airport parking provisions as well as the construction of an extension to the airport’s formerly short runway saw more flights scheduled to further destinations.
 
Since its design conception in the early ‘80s and construction in 1986, the London City airport parking and airfield has continued to expand enormously. As of 2009, the initial volume of 133,000 passengers has increased to an incredible 2.8 million passengers that, every year, make their way from the London City Airport parking facilities and through the airport’s gateways to countless domestic and international destinations. These figures rank London City Airport as the 15th busiest in the United Kingdom and 5th busiest in the greater London area.