A history from 1980
Jersey Airport 1937-1980
This article by David Kirkman was first published in the 1980 edition of Aircraft Illustrated
It would appear inconsistent to the casual observer that a small island could have the third busiest airport in the British Isles in terms of aircraft air transport movements. But Jersey is, to say the very least, somewhat unique in the general structure of the United Kingdom, and it is this individuality that results in the importance of its airport.
The Channel Islands are the southernmost extremity of the British Isles. Jersey has discrete and particular laws - occasioning fiscal advantages in personal and corporate residence, and an extremely agreeable climate: both well suited to the weary Briton. It is probably the latter factor which first directed the inhabitants towards the possibilities of air transport as a rapid means of facilitating an increasing tourist industry, and realising new markets for a thriving horticultural business borne out of the early seasons. Today the mainland enjoys the harvest of early tomatoes, new potatoes and cut flowers air freighted from Jersey.
The efforts to open air facilities to the Island, however, did not meet with universal approval. As is often the case, local resistance to any form of technological progress held up the development of air traffic and it was not until 18 December 1933 that a company registered as Jersey Airways Ltd was able to commence a scheduled service from Jersey to the mainland.
Beach airfield
This first operation was not conducted on true terra firma; the 'airfield' being a stretch of tidal beach situated between West Park and First Tower in St Aubin's Bay. The service, operated to Portsmouth using a DH94 Dragon Rapide was highly dependent upon suitable weather and tides.
The same in part is true today: Jersey is known for its fogs or 'sea frets'. With a pilot and seven passengers, trade in the early days was brisk but a far cry from the annual 1 .5 million or so passengers using the airport today.
Despite the scoffing of many of the locals, albeit very understandable considering the operational conditions, the daily beach service thrived. Passenger handling could be likened to the nightmarish - if it was not the tide or the wind, it would be the rain. All passenger processing and documentation was conducted in the open in a true pioneer spirit, but the outcome was an upsurge in interest towards air travel and better things were to come, with a remarkably high degree of punctuality and reliability.
It was obvious therefore that the strip on the sands had to be moved inshore. Almost at once, in the same year as the inaugural service, the Jersey Chamber of Commerce completed their preliminary investigation and made recommendations for a variety of airfield sites throughout the island. With the aid of a number of notable aviation experts from the UK, the present site - some 5 miles north-west of St Helier off the A 12 Beaumont to St Peters road - was declared 'most suitable'. The controlling authority for the beach strip was the Piers and Harbours Committee, and this same body was authorised by the States of Jersey to continue with the aerodrome administration on the new land site. So it has remained to the present, though with a subtle name change to the Harbours and Airports Committee.
10 March 1937
The culmination of this activity came on 10 March 1937 when the States of Jersey Airport commenced regular operations. Many facilities were provided, including a terminal building with a control tower, waiting room, passenger handling areas, a restaurant, and a customs area. The tower itself was equipped with the most up-to-date communications available, including an Adcock D/F system; and with the incorporation of powerful floodlights to illuminate the entire landing area, plus boundary and obstruction lighting, the airport was claimed as being 'the most completely equipped of any in the British Isles apart from Croydon'.
Jersey Airways rapidly became established, operating DH86 Express aircraft. By April 1937 the first newspapers had been airfreighted into the island and airmail services commenced two months later. Initially routes to London, Southampton and Exeter were introduced, but in the ensuing two years several more were added, including Dinard and Shoreham, and air traffic became a regular feature of the transport pattern within the Channel Islands.
But the prospect of more immediate development was interrupted by the outbreak of World War 2: military aviation began to replace the civil operations and by February 1940 a Fleet Air Arm training squadron had moved in with Fairey Swordfish torpedo bombers and Albacores.
The outlook for Jersey, far removed from the UK mainland, was perilous and it was not long before the Channel Islands fell to German Occupation on 30 June - 1 July 1940.
Following the withdrawal of the German forces at the end of the War, and the subsequent installation of a Royal Air Force presence at the airport, work began on the restoration of the island's tottering economy and the re-establishment of commercial aviation. It had been apparent in the pre-war years that the well-being of the island could be strongly influenced by air traffic, and on 10 May 1945 some of the previous airport staff were recalled to duty to collaborate with the RAF in resurrecting the operations.
By August Jersey Airways had opened up services to Guernsey and London using DH89 Dragon Rapides G-AGPH. G-AGPI, G-AGSH and G-AGSK, and Jersey and Guernsey Airways commenced joint operations - these leading to the merger of the two airlines on I September 1945 to form Channel Island Airways.
On 2 October all the initial work was complete and the airport returned to the control of the States of Jersey.
At about the same time the potential of Jersey as a holiday isle became apparent, and this aspect of its economy began to receive increasing attention. From 1946 onward air traffic through the airport showed a steady increase, and by 1950 over 200.000 passengers a year were being handled. Clearly tourism was to be a major industry.
Battle with Government
In the meantime, however, a battle had begun between the British Government, the States of Jersey and Guernsey and the newly formed British European Airways, over the future ownership of the expanding and successful Channel Island Airways.
The arguments were bitter, fuelled by the belief in the Channel Islands that with their own airline and a major entry airport on Jersey, BEA was somewhat of an intruder. After a month of wrangling, the Channel Islands relinquished their airline, and on 1 April 1947 BEA took charge of all the aircraft and services. Nevertheless, the airport continued to flourish as the tourist trade increased and the grip held by BEA on all scheduled services was found to have a loophole within the law by independent airlines operating 'tourist' services.
Among the independents was Air Transport Charter (Channel Islands), which was formed at the airport in July 1946 and started operations in March 1947 with two Miles M57 Aerovans, G-AISE and G-AISF. At first only freight charters were conducted, but with the acquisition of a Dakota in April 1947, charter flights for holidaymakers were introduced.
The Aerovans were soon replaced by Dragon Rapides on an interisland passenger service, the latter being run in close conjunction with another operator - Island Air Charters. IAC was inaugurated with Air Transport Charter in 1950 and the charter operations continued with passengers in the summer and freight in the quiet winter months.
A move to a new base at Blackbushe in 1950 led to a significant point in Jersey's civil aviation history when, in the summer of 1952, the airline was successfully prosecuted for running an unlicensed scheduled service between Blackbushe and Jersey; as a result of the case, the company ceased operations on 31 October 1952.
Prosecution
This was not the only casualty of such unlicensed operation. Channel Air Services, also based at Jersey, was similarly prosecuted for operating Ansons on the Blackbushe run and this company went into liquidation after incurring a fine of £500.
Another Aerovan operator out of Jersey at around the same time was Channel Islands Air Freight who used three (G-AISF, G-AJKP, G-AJOF) between 1950 and 1954, but the major airline to emerge in this boom period was Jersey Airlines.
Founded in 1948, the first commercial flight out of the airfield was conducted on 9 March 1949, but it was not until June 1951 that the airline was able to begin a scheduled service, to Southampton (Eastleigh). The airline set up its own maintenance facility at the airport and achieved several notable 'firsts' during its operation, including the service debut of the Heron by a British company.
This first aircraft, a Mk I B, G-AMYU, entered service on 9 May 1953 on the Gatwick run. Another historical landmark was the placing by Jersey Airlines of the first order for the Handley Page Dart Herald, of which four were initially secured in September 1960. On 20 May 1962, the airline sold out to the Air Holdings Group (the owners of British United Airways), and although the aircraft continued to fly with their original titling for a while, the change to British United (CI) Airways came into being in August of the following year.
The first 15 years of the post-war era had been a period of great expansion for Jersey Airport, notable developments having been the laying down of a tarmac runway and improvements to the passenger terminal facilities. The original runways were all grass; north to south, 580ft; north-east to south-west, 2,160ft; east to west, 2,940ft; and south-east to north-west, 2,160ft. As early as 1952 the present runway (09/27) had been established with an initial length of 4,200ft.
The resultant increase in traffic was almost meteoric and in the ensuing seven years several runway extensions were completed, these increasing the length of 09/27 to 4,350ft (1956), 4,550ft (1958), 4,850ft (1959) and 5,100ft (1960). A further 200ft was added in 1965/66.
One million passengers
Significant, when compared with the runway extensions, are the passenger figures, which had increased to 500,000 per year by 1957 and topped the one million mark in 1966. By 1978, Jersey was handling an annual total of 1.5 million passengers.
Continuous improvements to the airport have been made since the mid-sixties. The passenger departure lounge now covers an area of over 12,000ft, new taxiways and hardstands have been added or enlarged, and additional hangars and offices appeared. The air traffic control facilities were considerably expanded to meet the demand of the Jersey traffic, and the installation now controls all the air traffic up to 20,000ft within the Channel Islands Control Zone - an area of some 3,400 sq miles. Amid the large growth of passenger traffic stemming from the tourist boom, there was also an increase, more gradual, in freight movements. To meet this demand a new 14,500ft freight terminal and apron area was completed in 1966.
Many famous airline names operating scheduled services have been seen at the airport through the past 30 years. Among these have been Cambrian, BEA, Dan Air, Northeast, Aurigny, Rousseau, British Island Airways, British Caledonian, British Midland, Air Anglia, Air Safaris, Eagle Airways, British Eagle, British Airways, Autair, Channel, British United, Morton Air Services, Silver City, BKS, British Air Ferries and Intra.
Only the last of this significant list has ever used Jersey as its sole base. Although planned to operate an inter island air service, hence its name, Intra specialised instead in charter work to France after its formation on 1 January 1969. Soon it was able to pick up routes dropped by others, to Staverton, for example, in 1971 and to Cambridge in 1972, both these sectors having been relinquished by British Midland. After purchasing another Jersey based operator in 1972, International Air Charter, an air taxi firm, Intra progressed well with an all Dakota fleet.
Particularly lucrative has been the freight work, including a scheduled all-cargo service to Bournemouth (Hurn) which began in December 1972. The last remaining DC-3 in passenger configuration, G-AMRY, was converted to freight use towards the end of 1979 and for passenger flights a single Viscount and leased Heralds from Express Air Services (CI) were employed.
In the interim, 1 November 1979 saw the start of operations by a new company, Jersey European Airways (JEA), which took over the former activities of Intra Airways and Express Air Services (EAS).
The owners of JEA are EAS, itself a member of the Field Aviation/Hunting Group, and the locally-based Aviation Beauport air-taxi company. JEA's aircraft fleet includes two Embraer Bandeirantes, employed on short-haul services to Northern France, as well as Heralds, Viscounts, DC-3s. Islanders and Navajos.
During 1979 other operators on scheduled services were British Midland (Viscount and DC-9), British Island (Herald), British Airways (Viscount and One-Eleven, with a TriStar on one occasion), British Caledonian (One-Eleven), Dan-Air (One-Eleven, 748 and Viscount), Aer Lingus (Boeing 737), Air Anglia (F27), Brymon (DHC6), and Aurigny (Islander and Trislander).
Series charters were operated by foreign airlines including Cimber (F28), Maersk (Boeing 737). Delta, Belgium (FH227), Busy Bee (F27), and Linjeflyg (F28) with more or less frequent visits being made by British Air Ferries, Southern International, Guernsey Airlines, Alidair, Bretagne Air Services, Uni-Air, Air Anjou, Air Alsace, TAP, Inex Adria, Transeuropa, TEA and Martinair.
66,000 aircraft movements
Including the inter island routes to Alderney and Guernsey, direct passenger services from Jersey in 1978 operated to 31 UK, 2 Irish, 1 8 French and 21 other European locations. Exclusive of local traffic, total aircraft movements in that year amounted to nearly 66,000, the greatest number in any one day being 476 on 5 August.
It was British Airways' 5 October 1979 announcement of the abandonment of 26 of its domestic UK routes which prompted the most recent series of changes in the organisation of air services to Jersey, the BA withdrawal taking effect at the end of March 1980. Among the operators acquiring the former BA routes serving Jersey was JEA, which acquired, for example, the licence to operate to Newcastle.
Newly evident in 1980 (at Jersey as elsewhere) has been the Air UK presence, the airline having been launched in January this year. Among its routes to Jersey are those from Glasgow, Exeter, Bournemouth and Southampton, and included in the ex-British Airways services acquired in April 1980 was the Edinburgh-Jersey route.
The States of Jersey Airport is more than just a transit point for passengers en-route to the island's sunshine and its beaches, or for the freighting of the famous Jersey cows and horticultural produce. The airport also sports a thriving, vigorous aero club situated on the south-east boundary. It provides good hangarage and training facilities and is a Civil Aviation Authority-approved flying school.
Starting with modest means, and Auster equipment, in 1952, the Channel Islands Aero Club hosts a major rally and fly-in at the airport each May. Probably the largest international air rally now held in Europe, every year about 150-200 aircraft converge on the tiny island from all over the UK and Europe to take part. A remarkable degree of skill and dexterity is exhibited by the air traffic control staff in handling this vast influx amid all the regular passenger and freight traffic.
The home of civil aviation in Jersey has moved from that tidal strip in St Aubin's Bay to a major UK airport having international status in a turbulent and interrupted 45 years. There appears every reason that the island will remain a popular tourist centre for the future and that aviation in the area will progress with the continued blend of commercial and general aviation activity that marks the local scene - from airline operations to air rallys.
