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BATTLE OF BRITAIN AIRFIELD TAKES OFF AGAIN

The former Battle of Britain airfield at Manston, near Ramsgate, is again trying to become an international passenger airport when a local package holiday company launches a weekly charter service to the Costa Brava and the Algarve tomorrow (25 May).

Passenger flights were halted last summer when Planestation, the stock market-listed owner of the airport and its main airline EUJet, went bust.

New Zealand group Infratil, bought Kent International out of receivership for £17m last year. They already own and operate Prestwick airport which is the Scottish home of the budget airline Ryanair.

The company is reckoning o­n spending £9m upgrading the Manston runway and control tower  and increasing passenger traffic to 350,000 passengers a year in the short term.

There is speculation that low-cost airline Ryanair may be offered terms to run services from the airport, which would help Infratil reach its target of two million passengers a year.