Bagby Airfield

Some of you may have heard through other newspapers that Bagby airfield (International) is about to become North Yorkshire’s very own Heathrow. There is also an unattributed leaflet circulating in the Bagby area protesting against Bagby Airfield’s proposed planning application, suggesting a monstrous new build in addition to existing buildings. After these concerns were raised and brought to our notice here at the Thirsk Weekly News we decided to check out these claims. Having read the planning application and visited the airfield over the weekend I was struggling to see what the problems are. From my understanding I gather the Clubhouse will be replaced with new accommodation and leisure facilities. As for the existing hangars they are to replaced with new ones in keeping with the rest of the refurbishment. The small wind turbines are for electricity generation on site and reclaimed water  will also be re-used making a very modern and tidy development. As for 5,000 movements a year this figure is not very achievable considering the planes using Bagby are light aircraft and weather is a significant factor in private aviation. If the cloud base is low there won’t be any flying at all (considering the amount of poor weather we have during the year there is often very little flying throughout the winter months). What the protesters have not touched on is the length of the runways which cannot be extended, which means there won’t any increase in the number of aircraft using the field.People are also concerned about safety with the recent fatality of 2006 and the crash landing in 2007, yes accidents can and do happen, but we have not seen more fatalities at Bagby Lane over the past 20 years. It also must be pointed out that Bagby as an airfield has been in existence since the early 1970s and came about when our own Philip of Thirsk needed somewhere to fly from. It was intially just Philip and a couple of other local pilots and slowly it has grown into a vibrant part of the local community paying rates, creating employment and becoming another great asset to the Thirsk area as a whole. You may have noticed that this part of North Yorkshire has the third highest concentration of aircraft movements in the whole of the UK. Although prodominantly military there is still room for civilian traffic. The  reason for so much traffic is that the Vale of York is ideal for flying, nice and flat with the hills quite far apart. Bagby and Sutton Bank act as a buffer and keep fast jets away from Bagby, something which would change if Bagby ever closed.Aviation is vital to any economy in the 21st century and small flying clubs like Bagby are essential to keep a pioneering spirit to the fore and create interest amongst future generations.You may also like to know that you can become social members of the club and see what actually goes on down the lane!


TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE PLEASE SEE THE NEWSPAPER

Full Article