Transport officials have asked a small airport to prepare a detailed study amid increasing support for its expansion. Wolverhampton Business Airport, which currently handles a modest number of private aircraft, is seen by some as an ideal compromise in an increasingly bitter debate about the future of aviation in the Midlands. WBA's management and residents protesting against a possible second runway at Birmingham International Airport said Wolverhampton could act as a "pressure valve" to relieve increasing air travel demand in the Midlands over the next 30 years. Campaigners believe it would remove the need for expansion at Birmingham and also for a proposed Heathrow-sized airport in Warwickshire. A spokesman for WBA yesterday said a meeting with Department of Transport officials led to the airport being asked to provide detailed studies of what a new runway would "We were asked what we think we are capable of providing," said WBA spokesman Tim Rudman. "The Government is interested to know what we can provide and I think we have a very strong case to expand as a complementary 'little sister ' airport to Birmingham. "We could be a pressure release valve for Birmingham and let p r o p o s e d Heathrow-size airport in Warwickshire. entail. them concentrate on the most attractive traffic and we could handle the rest. "There has been a lot of informal discussions with BIA and I know managing director Brian Summers has been quoted as saying Wolverhampton could have a significant role to play." Mr Rudman said initial noise impact maps show an expanded Wolverhampton airport would only directly affect 105 buildings, compared with thousands affected by expansion at Birmingham and a new airport built between Rugby and Coventry. He said the business case for Wolverhampton would expect to deal with between five and 10 million passengers per year within the next 15 years. The airport presently does not have official figures as it handles only private and charter aircraft. Wolverhampton's case was backed by the Balsall Common Residents Association, which is opposing expansion of BIA. The association said a second runway at Birmingham would do "major damage to the countryside in Solihull without taking the opportunity to bring much needed regeneration to other parts of the West Midlands". Association chairman David Ellis said: "We have concluded there should be a major in-depth study undertaken by local government in conjunction with national government to explore what contribution a modest expansion of Wolverhampton Business Airport could bring to the West Midlands." He added Wolverhampton working alongside Birmingham would confirm BIA as the principal hub and eliminate any chance of the Warwickshire airport opening to replace it. The Government sparked furious debate with a consultation document aimed at finding a solution to projected increases in air travel demand of as much as 700 per cent within 30 years. | 
