Heathrow expansion "would boost regional airports"

,"Far from drawing traffic away from regional airports, expanding Heathrow airport could boost their business, it has been claimed.

Under proposals currently under discussion, Heathrow Airport would open a third runway - a move that some analysts have said could damage the UK's network of local airports.

However, according to Neil Pakey, deputy chair of the Airport Operators Association, the expansion will have the opposite effect - since it could mean the addition of more domestic flights to Heathrow's trip itinerary.

This in turn would improve access by flight to areas throughout Britain and prove a boon to travellers, he added.

"Heathrow is the UK hub, but unlike the French with Paris airport and the Germans with Frankfurt airport...we don't have the regional air access into the hubs," Mr Pakey said.

News of Mr Pakey's projections come as figures from the Civil Aviation Authority released this month showed that regional airports handled 42 per cent of all passengers who travelled through the UK last year.

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