What happens next
Timeline (45 items)

Following an Order of the High Court made on 15 February 2021 the decision of the Secretary of State dated 9 July 2020 to grant the application by RiverOak Strategic Partners Ltd for development consent for the proposed redevelopment of Manston Airport has been quashed. The Secretary of State must now re-determine that application. Further details on the re-determination process will be published here in due course.


The Secretary of State has granted development consent for this application. For further information please refer to the following decision documentation:
Planning Inspectorate Notification of Decision Letter
Secretary of State Decision Letter
Development Consent Order as made by the Secretary of State
Examining Authority’s Recommendation Report
Post-Examination Submissions
Regulation 23 Notice
Habitats Regulations Assessment

A Statement has been laid in Parliament by the Minister of State for Transport announcing a new deadline of 10 July 2020 for the decision.

IMPORTANT: As a result of ongoing Government guidance relating to COVID-19 the Planning Inspectorate is seeking to ensure that all Parties are notified of key developments on projects, in a timely manner. In order to help achieve this, and to minimise any delays which could arise if the postal service is affected, it would be extremely helpful if registered Parties that have not already done so could supply us with a contact e-mail address as soon as possible (details in the contact information heading of the project page).
Please be assured that this information will be managed in line with our Privacy Notice.

The responses to the Secretary of State’s Consultation of 17 January 2020 have now been published.
The Secretary of State for Transport has set a new deadline for the decision for this application which is 18 May 2020.

The Secretary of State for Transport has set a new deadline for the decision for this application which is 18 May 2020.
The Secretary of State for Transport has asked for comments and further information in relation to a range of matters by 31 January 2020.


The Examination closed at 23:59 on Tuesday 09 July 2019.

The Examining Authority’s Fifth Written Questions have been published.
The Submissions to Deadline 9 and Deadline 10 have now been published.

The Examining Authority’s Fifth Written Questions have been published.
The Submissions to Deadline 9 have now been published.
The Examination Library will be updated as soon as practicable.

The Submissions to Deadline 8 have now been published. The Examination Library will be updated as soon as practicable.

The Submissions to Deadline 7a have now been published. The exam Library will be updated as soon as practicable.

The Examining Authority’s Third Written Questions have been published.
The Examining Authority’s initial version of the draft Development Consent Order has been published.

The Submissions to Deadline 6 have now been published. The Examination Library will be updated as soon as practicable.

The Examining Authority’s Second Written Questions dealing with traffic and transport have been published.

The Submissions to Deadline 4 have now been published. The Examination Library will be updated as soon as practicable.

The Submissions to Deadline 3 have now been published. The Examination Library will be updated as soon as practicable.

A notification of March hearings and the Accompanied Site Inspection has been published.

Submissions to Deadline 1 have now been published. The Examination Library will be updated as soon as practicable.

The Examination Timetable (Rule 8 letter) has been sent to Interested Parties
Procedural decision following Preliminary Meeting

- Preliminary Meeting takes place
- Examination begins

The notification of Preliminary Meeting (Rule 6 letter) has been sent Read the letter
The letter also includes the draft Examination Timetable and Initial Assessment of Principal Issues.





This application was received by the Planning Inspectorate on 17 July 2018.
The application documents will be made available if the application is accepted for examination.
It is for the Applicant to decide whether or not application documents can be published upon submission (see government guidance).


This application was received by the Planning Inspectorate on 10 April 2018.
The application documents will be made available if the application is accepted for examination.
It is for the Applicant to decide whether or not application documents can be published upon submission (see government’s Planning Act 2008: guidance on the Pre-application process).

New Inbox: If you wish to contact the Planning Inspectorate about the Proposed Development, please send electronic correspondence to the new project-specific inbox [email protected]
Before contacting the Planning Inspectorate, please read Advice Note 8 and check the s51 advice tab (below) which may contain the relevant response to your enquiry.