Richard Branson Considers London Gatwick Airport Bid
Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson has expressed interest in the possible sale of London’s Gatwick Airport.
The owner of Virgin Atlantic Airways said he would be inclined to make a bid for the airport if other partners could be brought in.
“We would be interested in possibly buying Gatwick, but only as part of a consortium,” Paul Charles, communications director for Virgin Atlantic said.
“We would not do it alone,” Mr Charles said, adding that the UK Competition Commission still had to release its final report on Britain’s airports industry.
Mr Charles added that Virgin Atlantic would bring its strong customer service record to any consortium interested in buying Gatwick, Britain’s second-biggest airport.
The Virgin Atlantic director was responding to a report in the Daily Telegraph newspaper that said Branson was planning to bid for Gatwick with an offer that could cost more than GBP2 billion pounds (USD$3.6 billion).
“We are open to being courted by anyone who is interested in bidding,” the newspaper quoted Branson as saying.
Gatwick is currently owned by Ferrovial’s airport unit BAA. The UK Competition Commission recently ruled that Ferrovial must sell three of seven British airports, including two of three London airports — Gatwick, Heathrow and Stansted.
Gatwick is not yet officially up for sale, and a final report from the Competition Commission is not expected till next year.