VIRGIN boss Richard Branson and British Airways chief
executive Rod Eddington have teamed up to help launch a campaign aimed at
persuading the Government to boost investment in the country’s airports.
The Freedom to Fly coalition includes unions,
airports, airlines, tourism bodies and tour operators, and was formed to
influence the content of the Government’s 30-year White Paper on the future of
aviation, due out in the autumn.
Eddington said: “Too many times in the past,
Governments have dodged crucial decisions in aviation. Now the Government has
to make decisions to avoid creating a capacity crisis in the next few decades.”
The number of people flying in 2015 is expected to
reach around 310 million – almost double the number using air travel in 1998.
Branson added: “A no-growth solution is simply
unacceptable. People want the freedom to fly.”
Environmentalists oppose
further growth in the aviation industry because of its contribution to
pollution and global warming.