Wycombe Air Park, also known as Booker Airfield, is an operational general aviationaerodrome located in Booker, Buckinghamshire, south-west of High Wycombe, England. The airfield celebrated its 50th year of opening on 25 April 2015. It originally opened in 1941 as RAF Booker and was primarily involved in training during World War II, remaining a military establishment until 1965. Wycombe Air Park has a CAA Ordinary Licence that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction as authorised by the licensee. It has over 90,000 movements per annum, many of which are training circuits over the local area. The films Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines, along with Aces High were filmed here. On 17 November 2017 a mid-air collision between two aircraft from Wycombe Air Park lead to the Waddesdon Manor air incident. British European Aviation renewed its lease with WDC for 50 years with its group company AAA in 2014. Since then over £100,000 has been invested in making the airfield a premier GA destination including hosting the Aero Expo and Elite London show.
Use of the aerodrome
The lease on the aerodrome is held by Airways Aero Associations, who run Booker Aviation from the airfield. They provide limited air traffic control, basic firefighting and minimal other services to some the park users. The shareholding of AAA Ltd was sold in early 2014 to Heli Air.
The Air Park site is owned by Wycombe District Council, who had leased it to AAA for aviation use until September 2014. With the expiry of the lease and the failure of Heli Air to secure a new agreement with Wycombe District Council, speculation has increased concerning the future of the site. The Council are thought to be seeking an increase in the basic rent payable. With the Air Park losing money persistently, due to its losses on training activities, Heli Air has been seeking a rent reduction. However that would result in an unacceptable return for the Council on one of its major property assets. However, the then Wycombe Rural District Council, acquired the land from the Air Ministry at a heavily discounted price and by private treaty, with view the site being continued as an airfield. The main intention agreed by both parties, was for the ""continued use of the airfield for flying would make a substantial contribution to the solution of a public problem i.e. that of providing adequate facilities for private and business flyers to the west of London", this sale would lock-out speculators and property developers from the sale. Further housing has been discounted from the site. The Council is thought to be in favour of expanding the use of the site as a business facility rather than as a flying location. Recreational and leisure flying would potentially remain, along with use of the airstrip by the engineering and maintenance businesses at the site, but flight training activities could be substantially reduced or halted. Potentially this could address the long-running environmental issues with the airfield and its flying over the Chilterns AONB, though most of those now living near to the airfield would have moved there knowing full well an active airfield was nearby. At a recent JCC meeting, it was observed that the Air Park management had implemented nearly all noise reduction measures that were recommended during previous meeting.
Regulation and environment
The UK Department for Transport has suggested that it is minded to specify the Air Park under Section 5 of the Civil Aviation Act, unless a local solution can be achieved through the renegotiation of the lease. This follows an application made to the Secretary of State for Transport in 2009. If the Air Park is specified, the British Civil Aviation Authority will play a more direct role in regulating the environmental impact of air traffic at Wycombe Air Park. The DfT's consideration of a Section 5 order is in response to continuing complaints about noise from training aircraft based at the airfield. Wycombe District Council supported the request for the Section 5 order. An earlier request for a section 5 order was made by Wycombe District Council in 1988, but was turned down in favour of an expert Inquiry to identify ways in which the Air Park could improve. The whole process including the decision not to specify and the subsequent inquiry ran from 1988–1990, and resulted in the O'Connor report in 1991.
