RAF Church Fenton
2014 – present

2014 – present

Following the final departure of the RAF in late December 2013, the early part of 2014 saw the removal of a number of items of MoD equipment, including the Instrument Landing System and Precision Approach Radar.

In mid-2014, the whole site was offered for tender by the estate agents Lambert Smith Hampton, with a closing date for tenders of 31st October 2014.

In December 2014, the news began to filter out that the airfield had been bought not by developers as had been feared; but instead it had been bought by local businessman Chris Makin who is himself a pilot.

Whilst not bidding the largest amount in financial terms, the vendors decided that Chris’ bid presented the best plan in terms of redevelopment of the site in to a civilian airfield.

A “Fly-in” was held on Sunday 4th January 2015 to mark the hand-over of the airfield from the RAF to the new owner. This fly-in was hugely successful, with around 250 aircraft visiting; Church Fenton’s runways have likely never been so busy!

In January 2015, it was announced that Church Fenton would become known as Leeds East Airport, and a new website was launched: www.leedseastairport.co.uk

The early months of 2015 saw a hive of activity on the airfield, preparing it for its new lease of life. This includes renovation of the main gates, which had become very rusty during later RAF days, and the re-painting of 3 hangar’s doors. Many other tasks were carried out around the site preparing it for use as a civilian airfield.

On 1st April 2015, Leeds East Airport opened for business 7 days a week, offering hangarage, storage, industrial units and office space.