The owners of Southend Airport have announced their intention to sell the business, to “benefit airline partners and the region”.
Owner Esken has been undertaking a strategic review of the airport since November last year, and says selling the asset is the best option to help meet long-term goals.
Esken also has operations within the renewable energy sector. The review of its operations has concluded that the sale of the aviation business, primarily Southend Airport, will be of greatest benefit to Essex and the South East.
In an update about its review, Esken said the outlook across the UK aviation sector for summer 2023 is “increasingly positive”, with larger airports expected to be at or close to full capacity.
The company said it expects Southend Airport to be able to increase the number of peak time flying slots from 2024.
In January this year, a multi-year partnership agreement with Easyjet to operate from the airport and announced it will operate a new route to Amsterdam from the end of May, the fourth Easyjet destination from Southend. This will take the airport up to 18 weekly departures, a 30 per cent increase on last summer.
Esken also stated the airport is managing its costs to “match activity levels” and is trying to identify further revenue sources, including TV and advertising projects.
Regarding the potential sale, a spokesman for Southend Airport said: “Ultimately this will benefit our airline partners, customers, local stakeholders, and the region. Our parent company Esken is exploring a sale of London Southend Airport, and initial planning for this has already started.
“Esken will look for the right buyer with the capital to support our new management team and our ambitious growth prospects over the long term.”
Image source: Southend Airport
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