Expansion could turn much-loved London City Airport into another Luton

Bigger doesn’t always mean better – so plans to increase capacity at one of the country’s most popular airports should concern devotees

Small, when it comes to airports, is beautiful, which is why the news that London City has got the go-ahead to expand the capacity of its terminal by nearly 40 per cent – raising the current cap of 6.5 million to nine million passengers a year – may not be welcomed by those who use it.
The best airports are the ones you have to spend the least time in, and the smaller they are, the quicker you get through them. This has always been London City’s great strength compared to its lumbering London rivals like Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted. Even Luton sees nearly three times as many passengers as the docklands gateway. 
These airports are sprawling, impersonal travel processors. London City operates on a human scale – it boasts that you can expect to get from the entrance to the gate in less than 10 minutes. The departure lounge and the gates are then (mostly) only a short walk apart, and from there you step virtually straight onto the plane. When you land on your return, your hold bags are delivered with remarkable speed to the belt, which is only a few yards from the airport exit. And if you do get stuck in departures longer than you really want to, there is something about its waterside setting and the views over the old docks which makes the wait more bearable.
I’m not the only one to feel this way. A couple of years ago, Telegraph Travel’s own analysis, based on 16 different categories including average delays, the facilities in the lounge and the speed of processing arrivals, saw London City win out as the country’s best airport. 
And last year it came second in a Which? survey comparing its readers’ experiences of UK airports. It was pipped to top spot by Liverpool John Lennon which is also, surprise surprise, one of our smaller airports.
London City’s short-haul route network and its proximity to the City mean that it has traditionally appealed mostly to those on business, which has also helped it, of course. These passengers tend to travel alone, are experienced travellers and are often pressed for time rather than relaxing in holiday mode. In addition, they aren’t usually encumbered by children and are less likely to travel with hold baggage. All this has surely aided the smooth operation of the airport, despite the steady increase in the leisure destinations it offers. These include seasonal summer routes to Greece and also year-round services to Portugal and Spain. 
But, having used it on and off since the 1990s, I have to say that I have already watched its steady expansion over the last 30 years slowly dilute some of the appeal of the place. Those corridors to the departure gates have been getting longer and the lounges have become more crowded in recent years. Add another 40 per cent to its capacity it will have to cope with an average of 10,000 people a day.
Of course, there have been some upsides. More capacity means a greater choice of destinations and greater frequencies. Fares are unlikely to be the cheapest option compared with, say, Stansted, Luton or Gatwick, but for some passengers who live in London, it is a cheaper and quicker airport to get to. (Though I have to say that given how close it is to the city centre, the DLR is a frustratingly tortuous – and at peak times often very crowded – way of getting there. And if you live in the west of the city it is often quicker to get to Heathrow or Gatwick).
Putting aside environmental concerns and other objections from those living nearby, the risk of expanding London City is that it will dilute its appeal to those who use it still further. It’s perfectly understandable why the consortium which owns it would want to make the most of what they have got. But they risk following in the footsteps of so many others to have gone before them. It is not only airports which are vulnerable to the temptation of cashing in on success. I’ve seen it in hotels, resorts, restaurants, tour operators, travel agents. Get too big or expand too fast, and you jeopardise the qualities and the human touch which made you stand out in the first place.