What to expect from the UK’s first spaceport

On Tuesday the government revealed eight potential locations for the spaceport – which it is hoped will open in 2018.

Six of the locations are in Scotland (another Westminster reason to vote against independence?), one is in Wales and one is in England.

And while Mos Eisley, the fictional spaceport from Star Wars (pictured above, right), was a “hive of scum and villainy”, the government is hoping the UK’s spaceport will be a slightly less exciting hive of “regional and international investment growth”.

All the locations have had to meet strict criteria (see bottom of page), including requirements that the are far from densely populated area and have a long runway (or potential for one).

The shortlisted locations are:

• Campbeltown Airport (Scotland)
• Glasgow Prestwick Airport (Scotland)
• Llanbedr Airport (Wales)
• Newquay Cornwall Airport (England)
• Kinloss Barracks (Scotland)
• RAF Leuchars (Scotland)
• RAF Lossiemouth (Scotland)
• Stornorway Airport (Scotland)

The spaceport will need to have a runway of more than 3,000 metres because of the speed at which spaceplanes (see Skylon spaceplane video, below) would be coming in to land. Of the eight locations being considered, only Campbeltown Airport has a runway over 3,000 metres. The other locations would need potentially costly extensions.

Other factors being considered include the weather – because of fears of the impact of strong crosswinds – and environmental considerations.

‘Big business’

The government aims to have the spaceport open in 2018 for commercial spaceflights – also known as space tourism. It is part of a wider strategy for the UK to capture 10 per cent of the world’s space market by 2030.

The government says that if the UK’s space tourism is opened to commercial operators, such as Virgin Galactic, it could be worth more than £40bn and provide 100,000 jobs.

Announcing the shortlist, Vince Cable said: “Space is big business for the UK. It already contributes £11.3bn to the economy each year, supporting nearly 35,000 jobs.

“That’s why it’s important for us to prepare the UK for new launcher technology and take steps towards meeting our ambition of establishing the first British spaceport by 2018.

“Exploring the opportunities that commercial spaceflight presents, and potentially making strategic investments in this area, will support the growth of this thriving industry and underpin the economy of tomorrow, making the UK the place for space.”

All the shortlisted sites are coastal locations, and the chosen site would be given its own chunk of airspace.