Southampton International Airport (LPL)

About Southampton Airport

Southampton International Airport is located in Eastleigh in the county of Hampshire. It lies about 4 miles north east of Southampton. Southampton International Airport is the UK’s 20th busiest airport. In 2006 more than 1.9 million passengers used Southampton.

Parking at the Airport

There are two parking options at Southampton. They are Short Stay Parking and Long Stay Parking.
For travellers who require parking for less than 24 hours, Southampton’s Short Stay car park is ideal. It is conveniently located next to the terminal.
The Long Stay car park at Southampton is called Southampton Airport Pink Elephant and is situated just five minutes away. It is ideal for all travellers who need to park for more than 1 day. There is a coach transfer service to and from the terminal that runs every 5 – 10 minutes.

Facilities and Services

Southampton International Airport has services to 47 international scheduled and charter destinations across Europe. There is one passenger terminal at Southampton which has two levels. The ground level is shared by Arrivals; Check-in and Departures. The upper level is just used for Departures. The terminal has passenger facilities which include airport information; baby change facilities; Business Lounge; car hire; cash machines; currency exchange; Internet access; left luggage; lost property; medical assistance; postal services; telephones; trolleys and facilities for passengers requiring special assistance.
The terminal also offers a modest range of shops and restaurants.
Southampton International Airport has an exclusive executive lounge, located on the upper floor of the departure lounge. The Flybe Executive Lounge is available to all economy plus passengers providing WiFi access, a plasma screen TV, a Flight Information Screen as well as complimentary refreshments.

Getting To The Airport

By road – Southampton International Airport is situated just outside Southampton city centre. It is on the interchange of the M3 and M27. Passengers should exit at junction 5 of the M27. The airport is also easily reached via the A34 from Oxford and Newbury. The motorways leading to the airport are clearly signposted to the airport.
By rail – The airport has its own station which is connected to the terminal by a short walkway. The station has up to three trains every hour to London Waterloo and fast links to many InterCity destinations.
By bus/coach – There are two bus operators that serve Southampton Airport from Southampton city centre. The U1C bus service operates every 15 minutes during the week and every 20 minutes at weekends and public holidays. First Group operate an hourly service, 14, from Southampton Airport, Monday to Saturday until 13:26pm and two additional services later in the day. The National Express coach terminal is located in the centre of Southampton on Western Esplanade.

History of Southampton Airport

The first recorded aircraft movement at the site of today’s airport was in 1910, when local man Eric Rowland Moon, made and tested the Moonbeam 2 aircraft on North Stoneham Farm Meadows. In 1917 Stoneham Farm was requisitioned by the War Office for use as an aircraft acceptance park, but the base was given to the US Navy to develop an assembly area. In 1918 the Air Ministry gave approval for the site to be developed into a civil air transport system that would serve both international and domestic routes. However the site became a transit camp for refugees, mainly Russian, who were anxious to sail to America from Southampton. The shipping companies Cunard and White Star Line together with the Canadian Pacific railway formed the Atlantic Park Hostel Company to house them temporarily. The hostel was intended to be a short-term clearing house for those trans-migrants changing ships, but following changes to US immigration law which restricted entry to the United States some residents were forced to stay much longer. At the height of its use 20,000 passed through Atlantic Park in 1928 but then figures started to fall away, leading to the closure of the hostel in 1931.

In 1932 Southampton Corporation purchased the site, converted it back to an airfield and opened it as Southampton Municipal Airport. The Spitfire prototype took off from Southampton on 5th March 1936. At the start of World War II, the airport was re-commissioned as HMS Raven and subsequently spent most of the war in a ground and air training role for the Royal Navy. After the war the resumption of a regular air service to the Channel Islands marked the return of Southampton’s municipal airport.

In the 1960’s, Mr J N Somer, a private investor purchased the airport from Southampton Corporation. A number of improvements including the construction of a concrete runway were completed. In the first year of operation with the new runway, over 273,000 passengers passed through the airport. The 1970’s saw the construction of a new air traffic tower and the intallation of surveillance radar. In 1984, Airports UK Ltd, a subsidiary of BAA, was appointed to manage the operational activities of Southampton Airport.

In 1988, Mr Somers sold the airport to a consortium which led to major changes being made to it during the 1990’s. In 1990, BAA purchased the airport and announced its intentions to invest £27 million to improve the site. In 1994 after the completion of the redevelopment, the airport was renamed BAA Southampton International Airport and a new passenger terminal was opened by HRH, Prince Andrew, The Duke of York. In 2003 the airport achieved annual passenger figures of 1 million for the first time. The latest development at Southampton, a £5 million redevelopment of the departure lounge was opened in 2005.