The Telegraph has reported that the International Air Transport Association has just decided to classify Southend, which lies nearly 50 miles and an hour by train from the centre of London, as a London airport for the first time.
However, Matthew Hall, London City’s chief commercial officer, has told the Travel Trade Gazette that:
Giving the ‘London’ designation to an airport which is nearly an hour away by train is faintly ridiculous and extremely misleading. You have to feel for the visitor who expects to land in London and ends up in a field on the east coast. Why this particular affliction has been allowed to spread within the airport sector is baffling…
Hall added that London Luton (32 miles from the capital), London Stansted (40 miles) and London Oxford (60 miles) were also “bizarre naming decisions.”
The Telegraph has even put together a slideshow of other airports that are not where they appear or claim to be. For example: Munich West Airport is nearly 70 miles west of that city, Oslo-Torp airport is 75 miles from the Norwegian capital and Barcelona Girona airport (used by Ryanair) is 65 miles from Barcelona.
So what do you our London area readers think? Are Southend, Luton, Stansted and Oxford all London airports or are we just trying to trick some unwary tourists?!!