Gatwick boss ‘hopes and expects’ ministers will back second runway

Stewart Wingate says 2.2bn plan will add to south-east's air capacity more quickly than Heathrow expansion

The boss of Gatwick said he hopes and expects" the government will back the airport's plans for a second runway, adding that its proposals would bring extra air capacity to the south-east more quickly than a third runway at Heathrow.

Stewart Wingate, the airport's chief executive since 2009, said the 2.2bn plan to create a fully functioning second runway by the end of the decade had strong economic credentials and could chime" with the government's growth agenda.