Flying 'at the heart' of new plan for Old Sarum Airfield

A new planning application has been submitted for developing parts of Old Sarum Airfield. The grass runway is retained and is at the centre of the development along with new facilities for flying activities.

The planning application is close to the plan that went to a public consultation in March 2023, with a total of 315 houses proposed. That’s 165 fewer than the original 2015 plan.

The application says there is: “Provision for a mixture of employment, commercial/leisure, and aviation uses, including a ‘flying hub’ comprising a control tower, heritage centre, visitor centre, café/restaurant, parachute centre, aviation archives and aircraft hangars”.

Old Sarum Airfield has a number of heritage assets on site and close by. These include:

• Grade II* Listed 3 Former World War I Aircraft Hangars
• Grade II Camera Obscura Building
• Old Sarum Scheduled Monument
• Grade I Listed Remains of Old Sarum Castle and Cathedral

Architects Feilden & Mawson say they have consulted with Historic England, who said, ““Overall, Historic England is of the view that these proposals will cause ‘less than substantial harm’ to the setting, and thus significance, of several highly graded heritage assets. In our view that harm could be justified in terms of heritage benefits…”.

Click here to see the Old Sarum Airfield Planning Application

See also:

Old Sarum issues new masterplan for WWI airfield (March 2023)