Local politicians said they were devastated by Peel Group’s decision, which leaves hundreds of employees facing redundancies and comes days after the new prime minister, Liz Truss, said she had instructed ministers to protect the airport. Peel Group, which had extended a public consultation period by 10 days, said a strategic review had ended without clear proposals on the airport’s financial viability or a potential buyer. Peel said the high costs of running Doncaster Sheffield, whose flight numbers have more than halved since 2019, meant the airport would begin decommissioning from October 31. The company is in consultation with staff, with hundreds of people who work at the airport at risk of losing their jobs. Local politicians blasted the decision. South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard said: “I am devastated by Peel’s announcement today and angry at the impact it will have on our communities.” He said he hoped the prime minister would intervene. “Liz Truss said she would protect the airport. Now is the time to turn those words into action.” Coppard said the airport had received public money for years, but had turned down the offer of continued support, as well as the opportunity to meet potential news investors. He said: “The fact that they chose to reject our offer just confirms what many of us suspected: that Peel was never serious about finding an alternative and safeguarding the future of DSA. “It’s not too late to do the right thing. to reconsider their decision for the sake of those workers, businesses and communities directly affected by this appalling decision.” Peel Group said it received a letter from the mayor’s office earlier this month saying a group interested in buying the airport had come forward, but had not received further details on that potential buyer. The company added: “Unfortunately, no tangible proposals have been received regarding the ownership of the airport or addressing the fundamental lack of financial viability.” Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Peel said offering public funds to cover its operating losses until the end of October 2023 while a new owner was found would be an inappropriate way to spend public money “on an unsustainable, loss-making business”. The airport opened in 2005, converted by Peel from the former RAF Finningley airbase. The owners said DSA never attracted enough passengers to be profitable. The airport has been hit by the collapse of air travel during the Covid-19 pandemic and the loss of flights by two budget airlines, Flybe and Wizz Air. Flybe collapsed in early 2020 and Wizz Air stopped flying from DSA in June, leaving Tui as the only carrier using its facilities. According to aviation analytics company Cirium, around 4,600 flights took off from DSA in 2019, mainly Wizz Air and Flybe, but just 1,817 were scheduled in 2021.
