+ ON THE SOAPBOX: Robert Sinclair, Chief Executive, London City Airport

Robert Sinclair became Chief Executive Officer of London City Airport on 1 November 2017.  Five days later the airport celebrated the 30th anniversary of its opening by HM Queen Elizabeth II.

A New Zealander and qualified chartered accountant and solicitor, Sinclair held a similar position at Bristol Airport from 2008, during which time it saw record growth in passenger numbers and profitability and successfully delivered a £160m development programme.  He had been previously Chief Financial Officer at Auckland International Airport and before that at UBS investment banking for ten years.

Earlier this month, we published our first annual update report of the progress we have made on our 2030 Sustainability Roadmap. I was proud of the good start and progress we have made this past year, especially in maintaining the reduction of carbon emissions we are directly responsible for, despite a significant increase in our passenger numbers. We have also achieved significant milestones across all three of our pillars: decarbonising our airport, improving our environment and helping East London grow and prosper. 

However, the journey to net zero emissions will take time. Indeed, we face the same complex challenges as other industries, like developing our future energy strategy to power our buildings and working out what infrastructure we need to support our airlines with the right fuels they will need over the next decades. 

We continue to work closely with airlines and manufacturers to certify cleaner, quieter new generation aircraft. For example, Embraer’s E195-E2 aircraft conducted certification test flights at the airport last year and we are expecting it to enter commercial operations later this year. The E195-E2 aircraft offers improved fuel, emissions and noise performance (over 65% reduction in the noise footprint area compared to jets of current generation operating at the airport), benefitting our airlines, passengers and most importantly, our local community. 

We will continue to explore and collaborate with partners to encourage innovation and understand how we can be a part of the journey towards achieving zero emissions flight in the UK in the next decade – connecting the world more sustainably. 

Last year we were also particularly proud to be one of only two airports in the UK to achieve Level 4+ in the Airport Carbon Accreditation programme and we also achieved the UK’s highest percentage of passenger journeys to and from the airport made by sustainable transport modes. We’re continuing to work hard with partners to enhance train and bus connections to the airport, including the new Elizabeth Line and improvements to the DLR, such as the introduction of new carriages on airport services by 2024. We have also supported a car-sharing scheme for staff and rolled out EV chargers for use by passengers, staff and taxis.

As well as focussing on decarbonising our airport, we have made some important progress over the last 12 months on our second pillar, improving our environment, and our third pillar, helping East London grow and prosper. 

For example, as we continue to recover from the pandemic, we have relaunched important local community initiatives that were paused during Covid, including the STEM in Aviation Day, where we saw 400 children from East London schools learn how our industry is decarbonising and about opportunities that await aspiring STEM graduates. We also reinstated our annual Meet the Buyer Event, to create local business and investment, which is so crucial in supporting our local economy. 

However, as we recover, it’s also important that we plan for the future now.  For this reason, at the end of last year, the airport submitted an application to the London Borough of Newham to make changes to our existing planning permission, following an extensive 10-week local consultation. The planning application includes increasing our current planning cap on the number of passengers from 6.5 million to 9 million passengers per annum and amend our Saturday operating hours (we currently close at 12.30 pm), but with no extra flights than we currently have permission for. 

In a first for a UK airport, our plans will also mandate that only cleaner, quieter, new generation aircraft will be allowed to operate in any newly extended operating period. 

This will mean that airlines replace their older fleets with new generation aircraft sooner, bringing forward the benefits from increased flexibility, which in turn will accelerate the benefits of quieter aircraft for local residents throughout the whole week, and the airport becoming home to one of the youngest, most modern aircraft fleets in the country. 

The growth in passenger numbers to 9 million annually and increased flexibility will also create almost 2,200 additional jobs across London. And with East London, and Newham in particular, facing up to the stark challenges of the cost-of-living crisis, the airport will also be able to offer, as part of the plans, a significantly enhanced Local Community Fund of £3.8 million.

2023 is an important year for air travel.  As we now recover from the pandemic and look toward the future, I believe London City has an amazing opportunity to provide the vital growth in air connectivity and prosperity that our capital and our country so clearly needs, but done in a way that truly balances the climate and environmental challenges we all face and delivers for the local community around us.  

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Michael carrivick, United Kingdom

Good concise article with clarity re achievements and targets. LCY continues to thrive and bring great benefits to that part of London. Well done Robert!