Planning bid for Northumberland airfield on farm

The application for a certificate of lawful use relates to the facility at Charlton Mires Farm, just to the west of the A1 and north-west of the B6347 junction, around five miles north of Alnwick.

The site currently features a grass airstrip for light aircraft, around 500 metres long by 25 metres wide, a small hangar for storage, and a static caravan that is used as a rest room for pilots and passengers.

According to the application, the hangar has been on-site since 2006 and was granted retrospective planning permission in 2009 as an agricultural building; it is mainly used to store light aircraft used for personal use.

There is an air-sock to the north of the airstrip, although this has been taken down during the Covid-19 lockdown to deter use of the airfield.

The case of the applicants, Mr G Beal and Mr M Beal, who own the farm, is that the airfield has been used for more than 28 days annually for a period of more than 10 years and therefore meets the criteria for lawful use.

A planning statement for the bid, prepared by agents George F White, outlines the evidence for this, which includes aerial photographs of the site, references to Charlton Mires on airfield websites, and signed statements by pilots who have used it.

In its conclusion, it adds: ‘The time for taking enforcement action has expired and as a result, the site has an established use as an airfield.’

Controversial proposals relating to Eshott Airfield, 16 miles further south on the A1, were due to be decided at the March meeting of the Castle Morpeth Local Area Council, but the item was withdrawn from the agenda at short notice and a decision is still pending.

The application, which seeks to allow operating hours of 7am to 11pm on a permanent basis, was recommended for approval, although with a condition to limit the extended hours to a further 15-month trial period.

A previous 12-month period had been agreed by the local area council in September 2018.

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