Departure
95%
vs 95%
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Farnborough Airport (ICAO: EGLF) lies in Rushmoor, Hampshire, and is the largest and most prominent business aviation airport in the United Kingdom. Operated by TAG Aviation, it traces its origins to 1904 and is regarded as the birthplace of British aviation, having hosted the first UK powered flight in 1908. For the simulator pilot it offers a single long hard runway with full ILS coverage and an extensive Lower Airspace Radar Service, making it an interesting and busy business-jet destination close to London.
Farnborough Airport sits at Farnborough in the borough of Rushmoor, Hampshire, and is operated by TAG Aviation as the principal business and executive aviation gateway serving London. It holds a CAA Ordinary Licence and handles no scheduled passenger airline services, its traffic instead being made up almost entirely of business jets, corporate operators and a small number of private shuttle flights. For a simulator pilot the appeal lies in its long, well-equipped runway, its historic pedigree as the cradle of British aviation, and the volume of business jet traffic that passes through its purpose-built facilities.
Farnborough lies in Hampshire, close to the built-up area of Farnborough itself and near the M3 corridor south-west of London. The airport provides its own Lower Airspace Radar Service (LARS), divided into East, West and North Radar sectors, reflecting its position amid busy general aviation and business jet traffic in the London area. An Airspace Change Proposal affecting the airport's surrounding airspace was implemented in 2020 as part of wider UK airspace modernisation.
Farnborough has a single physical runway, 06/24, of hard construction and lit for night operations. It is equipped with ILS in both directions. Recorded lengths are 6,484 ft for Runway 24 and 6,318 ft for Runway 06. Field elevation is 220 ft.
Farnborough provides a comprehensive radio service. Approach is available on 134.35 MHz, with ATIS broadcast on 128.4 MHz. Director operates on 130.05 MHz, and three Lower Airspace Radar Service sectors are provided: Farnborough East Radar on 123.225 MHz, Farnborough West Radar on 125.25 MHz and Farnborough North Radar on 132.8 MHz. Tower can be reached on 122.5 MHz, TAG Aviation operations on 130.375 MHz, and Farnborough Fire on 121.6 MHz. The runway is equipped with ILS for approaches to both 06 and 24.
The airfield at Farnborough was established in 1904, and in 1908 it became the site of the first powered flight in the United Kingdom, when Samuel Franklin Cody flew his British Army Aeroplane No. 1. This achievement secured Farnborough's reputation as the birthplace of British aviation. From 1908 until 1991 the site was primarily a military aviation research base, owned by the Ministry of Defence through both World Wars and the Cold War. The first Farnborough International Airshow was held in 1948 and the event continues today as one of the world's leading aerospace exhibitions. Civil aviation operations began in 1989, and in 1991 the Ministry of Defence declared the airfield surplus to military requirements. Government plans in 1994 set the airfield on a path to redevelopment as a business aviation centre, with a private operator taking over in 1997 and planning for redevelopment beginning in 1999. A CAA operating licence was granted in 2003, and the airport's freehold was acquired in 2007, prompting major renovation. A masterplan for growth to 2019, and indicatively to 2030, was published in 2009, and in 2011 approval was granted to increase annual flights from 28,000 to 50,000.
Farnborough is today the largest and most pre-eminent business aviation airport in the United Kingdom, operated by TAG Aviation and used as a gateway for corporate and executive jet traffic serving London. It hosts a number of major business jet operators, and its hangar facilities have expanded over the years, including the construction of a third hangar, Domus III, begun in 2022. The airport does not operate scheduled passenger airline services, though it has been used as a base for private shuttle flights operated by BAE Systems between Farnborough and its other UK sites. The airport has pursued an active sustainability programme, achieving carbon neutral status in 2018 and further carbon accreditation in 2023, alongside a continuing Airspace Change process linked to the UK's Airspace Modernisation Strategy.
