Heathrow says it hopes to secure planning permission for its planned third runway by 2029 and open it within a decade, potentially missing the government’s 2035 target by four years. It says the deadline is difficult without a simpler planning process.
The Department for Transport said the timeline had always been ambitious and that there is currently no live planning application. A consultation published in June must be finalized before the scheme goes to a parliamentary vote, which could reportedly be delayed until 2027. Heathrow has welcomed government efforts to streamline infrastructure planning.
The £49bn expansion would raise the airport’s annual flight cap from 480,000 to 720,000. It would require demolishing hundreds of homes, diverting rivers and rerouting the M25 between junctions 14 and 15 through a tunnel. Heathrow says the project could create at least 108,000 jobs; campaigners and local groups oppose it, while Mayor Sadiq Khan has warned of effects on noise, air pollution and climate change.
