The independent Airports Commission, which issued its final report last year, pointed out that London's airport system would be using 90 percent of available capacity by 2030. Even under relatively pessimistic forecasts, it said, by 2040 all London airports would be full, with the exception of Stansted.
Image copyright Jeffrey Milstein/Gatwick Airport Image caption Gatwick Airport from above
Why Theo wrote this article We asked readers to send BBC Business correspondent Theo Leggett their questions on airport expansion. Theo chose four questions, and we asked you to select your favourite, which came from Bob White. He asked: "Why hasn't the option of building an additional runway at both Gatwick and Heathrow been considered?" Bob explained to us the thinking behind his question: "I would use the M25 analogy... by the time it was completed the motorway already required expanding. So why not be bold and show the world we are really serious about being an outward looking, trading nation and build UK airport capacity for the real long term future?"
The downside Yet there are also powerful arguments for limiting expansion. In environmental terms, for example, it could cause serious problems. The Climate Change Act introduced strict, legally binding targets for reducing emissions of
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carbon dioxide in the UK. To help achieve those targets, the government's Commission on Climate Change says that emissions from aviation should be no higher by 2050 than they were in 2005. This matters a lot. Carrying a single passenger from London to New York and back generates roughly the same amount of CO2 as an average family in Europe heating their home for a year.
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