Fastest 50 honour for airport chief

Sep 30 2009 By The Journal

THE man who heads the North East's largest airport will be the guest of honour at the Ward Hadaway Fastest 50 awards ceremony next week.

David Laws, chief executive of Newcastle International Airport, will give the keynote speech at the event at the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead on Friday, October 9.

As well as being a vital part of the North East economy, Newcastle International Airport is itself one of the success stories of the region’s business world.

After starting life as the airfield for the Newcastle Aero Club, the airport has grown immensely in size and influence to become one of the UK’s top regional airports.

Millions of passengers now use the airport every year with services flying to 87 destinations worldwide.

Figures show that Newcastle International contributes almost £400m a year to the regional economy while the airport has also prospered despite the recession.

This summer, it was announced that up to 450 additional jobs will be created, including 50 at the airport, with the expansion of budget airline Jet2.com’s operation there.

The airline is flying additional routes to Turkey, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece and Gran Canaria.

Newcastle International can also lay claim to being the most punctual regional airport in the UK.

Figures from the Civil Aviation Authority released earlier this month showed that the airport had the highest proportion of flights arriving early or at most 15 minutes late of 10 regional airports in the UK.

David Laws has been chief executive of Newcastle International Airport since 2007 and was previously commercial and aviation development director.

He knows the operation inside and out, having worked there for 30 years, joining as a fireman in April 1979. He has been praised for his commitment to the North East and ability to bring different parties together to work as a strong team.