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General |
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Bournemouth Airport is a busy airport in Southern England which is home to a variety of operators and unusual aircraft. It began life as RAF Station Hurn, which was opened on 1 August 1941. During the war it was home to a number of RAF and USAF units and some wartime buildings can still be seen here. On 1 September 1944 Hurn became Britain’s main long-haul airport and on 1 July 1946 it saw the departure of Britain’s first post-war passenger service across the Atlantic. With the opening of Heathrow, many passenger services moved there by 1949. Nowadays Hurn is known as Bournemouth Airport and currently operated by the Manchester Airport Group. For enthusiasts the appeal of this airport is in the diversity of aircraft that can be found here. It has an active flying club, several flying schools and a busy maintenance operation for light aircraft. With the CSE Citation Centre here and FR Aviation’s Falcon fleet also based here, biz jets are common sights. At the heavier end of the scale, cargo operations are run to various destinations using 748s, ATR.42s & 72s and a 737 freighter and Channel Express has a base here. Scheduled flights are flown by Palmair, Ryanair & Thomsonfly 737s, by Blue Islands and easyJet while charters include ski flights to Austria in the Winter and holiday flights to assorted European destinations in the Summer. Airliner maintenance and re-spray activities are done at European Aviation. Finally, the airport is home to the Bournemouth Aviation Museum and many of the exhibits, including the last flying de Havilland Sea Vixen, are seen on the European air show circuit. |
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Getting There |
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By car: The airport is to the North of Bournemouth and is easiest found by travelling South on the A338 from Ringwood towards Bournemouth. The airport is clealy signposted from here.
By taxi: Taxis serve the airport from the Bournemouth travel Interchange and from other locations.
By bus: The A1 bus service connects the airport from Bournemouth Triangle (stand F) and from the Bournemouth Travel Interchange (Stand 5). There is also a 111 service from Highcliffe via Christchurch to the airport.
By rail: Nearest station is the Bournemouth Travel Interchange, from where a bus or taxi can be used to get to the airport.
Once at the airport, the museum is easily reachable on foot since the bus stop is nearby. The B3073 is a longer walk but manageable in around 20 minutes or so, depending on which end is sought. The NW and NE sides are a long walk and perhaps a small taxi ride is better for those intending to head there.
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Around The Airport |
 Terminal |
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The airport terminal has undergone several changes since the war, although some parts of it are still quite old. A recent increase in traffic has led to an immediate and pressing need for a larger facility, which should be built in the next few years. Once upon a time the airport terminal had a viewing area but this has now been taken for airside use only and no viewing can be had from the public side, although there is a handy WH Smiths bookshop there which also sells sweets and drinks. |
 Bournemouth Aviation Museum |
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Follow signs to the airport terminal and keep going past the terminal. Signs then lead to the museum. Entry is from 10:00 to 16:00 in the Winter and 10:00 to 17:00 in the Summer (April to September) and currently costs 5GBP for adults and 3GBP for children, although concessions are available. For 25GBP visitors can become friends of the museum, gaining access for a whole year for no further charge. Alongside a number of fascinating exhibits, many airworthy, is a small engineering operation. The museum also has the only official public viewing area on the airport, with picnic tables and snacks & drinks available. From here it is possible to see traffic landing on or taking off from runway 26, the FR aviation pan and the flying club. Light aircraft use the Bournemouth handling apron, which is directly opposite the viewing area and this apron is also home to Bournemouth Helicopters. Photography from here is excellent. |
 B3073 |
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This road runs right alongside the airport on the South side and there are several places where one can park in lanes nearby. The fence here is no more than about a metre high and photography is excellent. At the Eastern end it is possible to photograph aircraft on the apron and at the Western end photography of aircraft landing & departing on runway 08 is possible as well as shots of aircraft taking off from runway 26, although a long lens is necessary for most traffic taking off from runway 26. A taxiway runs more or less parallel with this road, offering further photographic opportunities. A few words of caution: In recent times photographers at the Western end by the end of runway 08 have been searched by the police but have not been moved on. In addition, a few locals have also had their cars interfered with when parking in the lane by the Adventure Wonderland theme park, even when not blocking the road. |
 NW Industrial Estate |
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Please note: Signs here state clearly that entry is on business purposes only. At certain times the gate to this estate is also manned and entry will not be possible unless for business purposes. For those able to enter, there are a host of interesting photographic opportunities available, including the Airtime ramp, where light aircraft maintenance is carried out, the European apron, where 737s and other airliners are parked and where aircraft are sometimes seen for re sprays. Here too is the CSE hangar, which deals with the maintenance of Citations. Enthusiasts wishing to photograph aircraft at CSE are advised to park at the Western end and walk down and also to not photograph aircraft inside the hangar; there are usually two or three Citations outside.
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 Flying Club |
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Located on the NE side, the Flying Club has a bar, restaurant and a patio which offers excellent views of the airport opposite the end of runway 26. Entrance is for members only but enthusiasts can join and use these facilities. |
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Howard J. Curtis |
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Howard J. Curtis |
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