Advancing UK Aerospace, Defence, Security & Space Solutions Worldwide

Aerospace

Stobart Aviation hires Luke Hayhoe

Former BA CityFlyer General Manager Luke Hayhoe has joined Stobart Aviation as it works to boost relationships with its customer airlines at London Southend Airport, Carlisle Lake District Airport and Teesside International Airport.

Luke (above), whose aviation career spans more than two decades, working across a variety of areas, joined the business as Aviation Business Development Director on Monday 9th September.

Luke was most recently with BA as General Manager Commercial and Customer for BA CityFlyer.  During his time at BA CityFlyer, Luke led a team of more than 300 people, delivering profitable commercial growth at London City Airport as services expanded from just six routes to over 30.

Advertisement
PTC rectangle

Passenger numbers also grew at an impressive rate during Luke’s tenure - from 400,000 to nearly 3 million - amid the consistent delivery of exceptional customer experience on the ground and in the air.

Luke will be responsible for airline relationships, marketing and delivering passenger growth across the Stobart Aviation airports, with his main focus on London Southend Airport, London’s next big airport. 

London Southend is rapidly growing, with circa 50% more customers so far this summer and Ryanair and Loganair recently starting operations at the airport. easyJet has also based a fourth aircraft at London Southend Airport, serving more than 30 destinations.

Advertisement
ODU RT

The airport’s award-winning offering – consumer group Which? recently named London Southend the best airport in London for the sixth year in a row – will further grow with the addition of Wizz Air with flights taking off to Central Europe in October and November.

Commenting on his appointment, Luke Hayhoe, said “It’s really great to be joining Stobart Aviation at such an exciting time, the passenger growth is really impressive.  I’m looking forward to developing relationships with all of our customer airlines as well as welcoming new airlines so we can jointly add profitable growth, with a specific focus on delivering more than 5m passengers at London Southend Airport. London Southend has a fantastic customer proposition. It’s quick and easy to travel through, with excellent access from the heart of London with trains from London Liverpool Street in just over 50 minutes.”

Advertisement
FIA2026 animated banner
Milestone reached with expansion of FRA over Scotland

Aerospace

Milestone reached with expansion of FRA over Scotland

24 March 2026

UK airspace modernisation has passed a major milestone with the expansion of Free Route Airspace (FRA) across Scottish Upper Airspace, delivering significant environmental and operational benefits for the aviation industry.

Global carbon standard reveals latest airport climate action worldwide

Aerospace

Global carbon standard reveals latest airport climate action worldwide

24 March 2026

Airports Council International has today published the annual results on carbon performance and participation trends for its global carbon management standard for airports, Airport Carbon Accreditation.

Aircraft orders in February hit three-year high

Aerospace

Aircraft orders in February hit three-year high

24 March 2026

Commercial aircraft orders grew by 83% in February 2026 compared to February 2025 figures, marking the strongest February orderbook since 2023 according to trade association ADS.

British Airways

Aerospace Space

British Airways' first Starlink flight takes off

23 March 2026

British Airways’ first aircraft equipped with Starlink Wi-Fi took off to Houston last Thursday, the first flight operated by a UK airline featuring the innovative technology.

Advertisement
ODU RT
Global Innovation Centre opened by ePropelled in Coventry

Aerospace Defence Security

Global Innovation Centre opened by ePropelled in Coventry

23 March 2026

Provider of smart propulsion solutions and energy management systems for uncrewed vehicles, ePropelled, has opened its new Global Innovation Centre in Coventry, expanding the UK’s sovereign capability in electric and hybrid propulsion as the company scales toward producing more than one million propulsion systems annually by 2027.

GE Aerospace to expand UK and European production capacity

Aerospace

GE Aerospace to expand UK and European production capacity

19 March 2026

GE Aerospace plans to invest more than €110 million across its European manufacturing sites this year as it looks to expand production capacity, accelerate advanced manufacturing and strengthen delivery, including significant investment in the upgrade of multiple sites across the UK.

Advertisement
PTC rectangle
Advertisement
FIA2026 animated banner