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| Manston Airport to close on 15 May | Manston Airport to close on 15 May |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Manston Airport in Kent is to close next week with the loss of up to 150 jobs after it failed to find a buyer, its owners have said. | Manston Airport in Kent is to close next week with the loss of up to 150 jobs after it failed to find a buyer, its owners have said. |
| The loss-making airport will close on 15 May after a US firm's offer to buy the site was rejected on Monday and another bid fell through in April. | |
| An airport spokesman said a meeting was held with staff on Tuesday morning. | An airport spokesman said a meeting was held with staff on Tuesday morning. |
| He said "a viable alternative" to allow the airport to remain open had not been found. | He said "a viable alternative" to allow the airport to remain open had not been found. |
| "Proposals put forward by staff were carefully considered by the management and owners but these proposals would still have required ongoing substantial losses be subsidised and therefore were not viable," a statement said. | "Proposals put forward by staff were carefully considered by the management and owners but these proposals would still have required ongoing substantial losses be subsidised and therefore were not viable," a statement said. |
| "In the absence of other options, the decision has been taken to close the airport on the 15 May. | "In the absence of other options, the decision has been taken to close the airport on the 15 May. |
| "Individual consultation will now take place with all staff members who will be supported through this process." | "Individual consultation will now take place with all staff members who will be supported through this process." |
| Flights withdrawn | |
| The statement added it had been "a very difficult time for everyone" who worked at the airport and "we would like to thank all staff for their professionalism over the last few weeks". | The statement added it had been "a very difficult time for everyone" who worked at the airport and "we would like to thank all staff for their professionalism over the last few weeks". |
| Scottish businesswoman Ann Gloag, who co-founded the Stagecoach Group, bought Manston Airport for £1 last year. | |
| In March, the airport said it was in talks about closing because it was losing £10,000 a day. | |
| Several airlines have taken their business elsewhere, including KLM, which ran two daily flights to Amsterdam. | |
| Newmarket Holidays, which offers flights to Verona and Naples in Italy, said it would move its Kent departures from Manston to Lydd Airport. |