Future LuToN – our proposed development and the DCO
Creating thousands of jobs
There is an opportunity for our airport to play an even more substantial role in creating jobs and economic opportunity in the area.
We estimate that a London Luton Airport handling 32 mppa by the mid-2040s could support delivery of almost 11,000 new jobs.
The contribution of an expanded London Luton Airport could provide an additional economic benefit of £1.5 billion every year.
In addition, expansion of our airport will deliver important new connectivity for the local area, helping to attract new businesses and improve productivity as well as allowing local residents more opportunities to visit friends and family and travel globally
What is the DCO process?
Our project is of a size and scale that it meets the thresholds to be a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project. That means we must apply for a Development Consent Order (DCO). The application will be examined by the Planning Inspectorate and decided by the Secretary of State for Transport (not Luton Council).
We submitted our application to the Government for a Development Consent Order (DCO) on February 27 2023 and await confirmation that it will be accepted for examination. Further details will be widely announced in due course.
See a fly-through of the proposals (as at 2022):
Our proposed development
In late 2022 we held a second statutory consultation on our proposals to increase the capacity of London Luton Airport to 32 million passengers per annum (mppa) by making the best use of our existing runway.
We had carefully and seriously considered the wealth of feedback received from the 3,501 people and organisations who took the time to respond to our first statutory consultation in 2019. This feedback, along with the impact that Covid-19 has had on the aviation industry, led to us undertaking an extensive and in-depth review of our proposals. Following this review, we made some important changes to our proposals.
Our consultation showed how we planned to make the most of the social and economic benefits expansion offers, while as far as possible minimising the environmental impacts on nearby communities.
The revised scheme showed a real commitment to addressing environmental impacts and introduced Green Controlled Growth as a unique way to monitor, measure and use environmental factors to manage airport growth rather than passenger numbers alone. Green Controlled Growth was introduced to have stretching, binding and independently measured targets.
Compared to the scheme we previously consulted on, the scale of the reduction in earthworks was equivalent to a typical Egyptian pyramid. This would greatly improve both the visual and environmental impact, as well as help to reduce the construction works on site and the number of construction vehicles on the roads.
We also introduced a range of sustainability design measures, including enhanced solar energy production and rainwater harvesting, as well as further improvements to Wigmore Valley Park and the area around it, including expanding the public open space and preserving more trees and biodiversity.
Read detailed information about our environmental measures, and about Green Controlled Growth, in the Our Planet section.
Land Referencing
Land Referencing is an ongoing process which plays an important role in the preparation of an application for any major infrastructure project, including applications for a Development Consent Order (DCO).
Land Referencing is the process of identifying people and organisations that have a legal interest in:
- property or land that may be required for a proposed development
- or property or land which is not required for the development itself, but is in an area which may be affected by the proposed development
With this information we are able to keep people informed about our proposals and ensure they receive statutory notifications about our proposals to ensure their interests are represented in the planning process. This includes sending pre-application consultation letters to people identified through the Land Referencing process.
The guidance sheet provides information about how we are carrying out Land Referencing for the proposed expansion of London Luton Airport, and addresses some commonly asked questions on the Land Referencing process.
Click here for the guidance sheet
Key documents from Statutory Consultation 2019
Click the links to read the following documents:
Information booklet
Guide to Statutory Consultation
Feedback form – consultation now closed
Statement of Community Consultation
View information boards displayed at consultation events
Detailed technical documents supporting Statutory Consultation
PEIR Non-Technical Summary
PEIR Volume 1
PEIR Volume 2, Part A
PEIR Volume 2, Part B
PEIR Volume 3, Contents
PEIR Volume 3, Appendices, Part A
PEIR Volume 3, Appendices, Part B
Outline Need Case
Surface Access Strategy Report
Surface Access Drawing Package
Scheme Development and Construction Report
Scheme Development and Construction Report Appendix C
Explanatory Note on Airspace
Compensation Propoals
Draft Land Assembly Plans
Draft Employment and Training Strategy
Feedback from Non-Statutory Consultation in summer 2018
In February 2019 we published two technical documents which outlined the feedback received during our summer 2018 consultation, and how our expert advisors had continued to assess the options for development in the light of comments made.
Non-Statutory Consultation Report
Sift 3 Report
Older items
You can also read:
Non-Statutory Consultation Document
Non-Statutory Consultation Summary Document
Sift 1 report
Sift 2 report
Vision for Sustainable Growth 2020-2050