Gatwick Airport is to begin development of its second runway after the Court of Appeal dismissed a legal challenge by campaigners against the £2.2bn expansion scheme. The ruling clears the way for a project that will allow around 100,000 more flights a year to use Britain's second busiest airport.
The appeal court's decision, announced on Tuesday, upholds an earlier High Court judgment from June that the plan could proceed. Local campaign groups had asked the Court of Appeal to overturn that judgment, but their application has now been refused, ending the latest round of a legal dispute over the airport's expansion.
The scheme was formally approved by the Transport Secretary, Heidi Alexander, in September 2025. That approval was then challenged by opponents of the project, leading to the High Court ruling in June and, ultimately, to Tuesday's appeal ruling at the Court of Appeal. The government's original decision therefore remains the basis on which the airport can now move forward.
Under the approved project, Gatwick will add a second runway, giving the airport substantially more capacity than it has at present. The expansion is expected to support about 100,000 additional flights a year, a significant increase in the number of arriving and departing aircraft the airport can handle.
The High Court ruled in June that the ministerial approval was lawful, and the Court of Appeal has now dismissed the campaigners' challenge to that conclusion. The result is that the original decision to approve the expansion remains intact, and no court order stands in the way of development work beginning.
Campaigners had sought to block the project at both stages of the legal process. Their initial challenge failed in the High Court, and their appeal has now been rejected as well. The court rulings therefore settle the question of whether the expansion could go ahead, leaving the airport free to begin the next phase of the scheme.
Having cleared the legal hurdle, Gatwick can now turn its attention to delivering the project. At £2.2bn, the expansion represents a major investment in the airport's ability to grow. The scheme is expected to bring a major expansion of capacity at one of the UK's busiest transport hubs. The court process had delayed the start of development, but it has also provided clarity about the legal validity of the government's decision.
The decision is also significant for Gatwick's plans to grow. Already the second busiest airport in the country, it will be able to press ahead with a plan designed to substantially increase its flight numbers. The next step for Gatwick will be the start of development work on the site now that the legal process has concluded.
