{{Short description|Airport in Scone, Scotland}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}} {{Use British English|date=May 2013}} {{Infobox airport | name = Perth Airport | nativename = | nativename-a = | nativename-r = | image = File:Perth Airport from the air (geograph 3605905 original).jpg | image-width = | caption = Perth Airport from the air, looking northeast to [[Coupar Angus]]. The runways in view are (clockwise from left): 03/21, 15/33 and 09/27 | IATA = PSL | ICAO = EGPT | type = Public | owner = Morris Leslie Ltd | operator = ACS Aviation Ltd | city-served = [[Perth, Scotland|Perth]], Scotland | location = | elevation-f = 395 | coordinates = {{coord|56|26|28|N|003|22|26|W|region:GB-PKN|display=inline,title}} | pushpin_map = Scotland Perth and Kinross | pushpin_label = EGPT | pushpin_map_caption = Location in Perth and Kinross | website = [http://www.perthairport.co.uk/ www.perthairport.co.uk/] | metric-rwy = Y | r1-number = 03/21 | r1-length-m = 853 | r1-surface = [[Asphalt concrete|Asphalt]] | r2-number = 09/27 | r2-length-m = 609 | r2-surface = Asphalt | r3-number = 15/33 | r3-length-m = 622 | r3-surface = [[Grass]] | stat-year = | stat1-header = | stat1-data = | stat2-header = | stat2-data = | footnotes = Sources: UK [[Aeronautical Information Publication|AIP]] at [[National Air Traffic Services|NATS]]<ref name="aip">[http://www.nats-uk.ead-it.com/public/index.php%3Foption=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=118&Itemid=167.html Perth/Scone – EGPT]</ref> }}
'''Perth Airport''' {{airport codes|PSL|EGPT}} is a [[general aviation|general-aviation]] [[airport]] located at [[Scone, Scotland|New Scone]], {{convert|3|NM|mi km|0|order=out}} northeast<ref name="aip"/> of [[Perth, Scotland|Perth]], Scotland. The airport is used by private and business aircraft, and for [[flight training|pilot training]]. There are no commercial scheduled flights from the airport.
Perth Aerodrome has a [[Civil Aviation Authority (United Kingdom)|CAA]] Ordinary Licence (Number P823) that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction as authorised by the licensee, Morris Leslie Limited.<ref>[http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/375/srg_asd_ordinarylicences.pdf Civil Aviation Authority Aerodrome Ordinary Licences]{{deadlink|date=May 2026}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Aerodrome licenses (a bare list of aerodromes holding a CAA license) |url=https://www.caa.co.uk/commercial-industry/airports/aerodrome-licences/licences/aerodrome-licences/ |website=caa.co.uk |access-date=13 May 2026}}</ref>{{bettersource|date=May 2026}}
The airport is operated daily from 09:00 to 17:00 by ACS Aviation Ltd.<ref name="aip">[http://www.nats-uk.ead-it.com/public/index.php%3Foption=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=118&Itemid=167.html Perth/Scone – EGPT]</ref>
==History== [[File:G NFLC Taxying to its final resting place sized.jpg|thumb|A [[British Aerospace Jetstream]] arrives to be used as an instructional airframe by AST. In the background is the original hangar 1, which dates back to the 1930s.]] The airport opened in 1936 as '''Scone Aerodrome'''. A flight training school, training military pilots, was established shortly after the airport was opened.<ref>{{Cite web|title=From world wars to Bond movies, the flying school at Scone Aerodrome's rich history is no flight of fancy|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/18654389.flying-school-scone-aerodromes-rich-history-no-flight-fancy/|access-date=2020-10-17|website=HeraldScotland|date=16 August 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
Immediately after the start of [[World War II]], researchers working on aircraft-mounted radars were stationed at Scone for a brief period, fitting their [[radar]] systems to various aircraft. The site was unsuitable for such work, and the team moved to a new site in Wales in November. During the war, [[No. 309 Polish Fighter-Reconnaissance Squadron]]<ref name="Jefford1988p85">{{Harvnb|Jefford|1988|p=85.}}</ref> and [[No. 666 Squadron RAF]] used the aerodrome, then known as '''RAF''' ('''Royal Air Force''') '''Scone'''.<ref name="Jefford1988p104">{{Harvnb|Jefford|1988|p=104.}}</ref>
The following units were also here at some point:<ref name="ABCT">{{cite web|url=https://www.abct.org.uk/airfields/airfield-finder/perth-ii-scone/ |title=Perth II (Scone) |publisher=[[Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust]]|access-date=2 December 2024}}</ref> {{columns-list|colwidth=40em| * [[No. 1 Civilian Fighter Control Co-operation Unit RAF]] * [[No. 5 Flying Instructors School RAF]] * [[No. 5 Flying Instructors School (Elementary) RAF]] * [[No. 5 Flying Instructors School (Supplementary) RAF]] * [[No. 6 Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit RAF]] * [[No. 7 Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit RAF]] * [[No. 7 Air Observers Navigation School RAF]] * [[No. 7 Civil Air Navigation School RAF]] * [[No. 9 Gliding School RAF]] * [[No. 11 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School RAF]] * [[No. 11 Elementary Flying Training School RAF]] * [[No. 11 Reserve Flying School RAF]] * [[No. 12 Air Experience Flight RAF]] * [[No. 1966 Reserve Air Observation Post Flight RAF]] * [[No. 1967 Reserve Air Observation Post Flight RAF]] * [[No. 2821 Squadron RAF Regiment]] * Experimental Flight * [[Glasgow University Air Squadron]] * [[Universities of Glasgow and Strathclyde Air Squadron]] * Wireless Development Flight }}
The only scheduled commercial flights operated briefly from Perth were a British Airways service to [[Stavanger]] in Norway at the beginning of the [[World War II|Second World War]], and a post-war BEA service to Glasgow's [[Renfrew airport]]. The airport was subsequently bought by [[Airwork Services]], which continued the long tradition of [[Pilot licensing in the United Kingdom|pilot training]] at Perth.<ref name=abct>{{Cite web |url=http://www.abct.org.uk/airfields/airfield-finder/perth-ii-scone/ |title=Perth II (Scone) – Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust UK}}</ref>
By 1960 Airwork acquired [[Air Service Training]] (AST), an engineering training school, which it relocated from the south of England to the airport. The whole operation took on the AST name. AST gained a worldwide reputation for aviation training, being known as Britain's Air University. Students of more than 100 countries have been trained at Perth. Following a worldwide downturn in aviation, AST pulled out of pilot training in 1996. A year later the site was bought by Morris Leslie Ltd.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Our History – Our Story|url=https://www.morrisleslie.com/group/our-story/our-history/|access-date=2020-10-17|website=Morris Leslie|date=10 April 2013 |language=en-US}}</ref>
Perth Airport remains Scotland's main airport for general aviation and is the base of the Scottish Aero Club, which was founded in 1927. The airport is home to ACS Aviation Ltd, which provides private and commercial flight training, also on site is an aircraft maintenance company, ACS Engineering and numerous other non-aviation-related businesses.<ref name=abct />
AST, which is now part of [[Perth College UHI|Perth College]], retains a presence at the airport and continues to offer [[Aerospace engineering|aeronautical engineering]] courses.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.airservicetraining.co.uk/ast-student-experience/campus/perth-airport-campus-scone|title=Perth Airport Campus|last=Tayfusion|website=airservicetraining.co.uk|language=en|access-date=2019-04-17}}</ref> In 2011, AST announced a return to airline pilot training.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Scone History|url=http://sconecc.co.uk/scone-history/|access-date=2020-10-17|website=Scone CC|language=en-US}}</ref>
[[Scotland's Charity Air Ambulance]] (SCAA) was formed in 2012 and launched a helicopter air ambulance in May 2013 to assist the Scottish Air Ambulance Service (SAAS) to deliver front-line care to time-critical emergencies across Scotland. SCAA provides a fully equipped medical helicopter that can be deployed from its central base at Perth Airport to incidents across the length and breadth of Scotland.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.scaa.org.uk/ | title=Scotland's Charity Air Ambulance}}</ref>
In February 2019, the airport was reported to be looking into the possibility of attracting [[low-cost carrier]]s such as [[Easyjet]] and [[Ryanair]] for scheduled passenger flights,<ref name=bbc20190225>{{cite news |last1=Black |first1=Andrew |title=Small airport considers passenger flights |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-47355574 |publisher=BBC Scotland |date=25 February 2019}}</ref> though ACS Aviation subsequently denied having any such plans.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Dickie |first1=Douglas |title=ACS Aviation denies any plans for commercial flights |url=https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/local-news/acs-aviation-denies-any-plans-14071284 |work=Daily Record |date=1 March 2019}}</ref> Perth does not have the approach procedures required<ref name=bbc20190225 /> and its longest runway, at {{convert|853|m}} in length, is not long enough to accommodate commercial jet aircraft, which typically require a minimum of 1700m in order to land and take off.
==Runways== The airport's runways are:<ref name=sop/>
{| class="wikitable" !Direction !Length (metres / feet) !Surface |- | '''03/21''' || '''853 / 2,799''' || '''Asphalt''' |- | 09/27 || 609 / 1,998 || Asphalt |- | 15/33 || 622 / 2,041 || Grass |}
Due to the airport's terrain, aircraft on the threshold of runway 21 are out of sight to aircraft on runway 09/27.<ref name=sop/>
===Lighting=== The airport is licensed for night take-offs and landings on runway 03/21. Out-of-hours airport use is strictly Prior Permission Required (PPR).<ref name=sop/>
The lighting is to scale L4 and includes:<ref name=sop/>
*Variable Intensity [[Precision Approach Path Indicator]] lighting (VI PAPI) *Variable Intensity runway edge (white), threshold (green) and end (red) lighting *Taxiway Bravo exiting towards the start/end of runway 09 has fixed green taxiway centreline lighting *Stopway lighting *Obstacle lighting
There is no approach lighting or aerodrome beacon. Pilot-operated lighting is available for out-of-hours use. Five clicks within five seconds on frequency 119.80 turns on the PAPI lights for ten minutes. An additional five clicks resets the timer to zero. This feature is not available for taxiway lights.<ref name=sop/>
==Standard operating procedures== The Aerodrome Traffic Zone (ATZ) is notified active 0900 – 1700[[zulu time|z]] in winter, 0800 – 1600Z in summer, and at other times by [[NOTAM]]. Perth Radio station (122.080 [[MHz]]) is usually staffed when the ATZ is active. Its communications are air/ground; it does not give instructions or clearances.<ref name=sop>[https://perthairport.co.uk/images/Perth-Airport-SOPs-24042018.pdf STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES, Perth Airport EGPT] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003151238/https://perthairport.co.uk/images/Perth-Airport-SOPs-24042018.pdf |date=3 October 2021 }} – Perth Airport, 24 April 2018</ref>
===Obstacles=== There is a line of hills running northeast–southwest to the east and south of the airport at a distance of 1.5 nm at its closest point. There are two significant peaks – Kingseat, 839 feet [[Above Aerodrome Elevation]] (AAL) (1236 feet [[Height above sea level|Above Mean Sea Level]] (AMSL)), range 5 nm, bearing 058 degrees; and Murrayshall Hill, 521 feet AAL (918 feet AMSL), range {{convert|9480|feet}}, bearing 160 degrees.<ref name=sop/>
There are the following obstacles relative to the following runways:<ref name=sop/>
*Runway 15: trees and buildings across climb path, height 15 feet AAL (450 feet AMSL) *Runway 21: trees 164 feet right of climb path, height 53 feet AAL (450 feet AMSL) *Runway 27: trees crossing climb-out path, height 60 feet AAL (457 feet AMSL)
===Circuits=== The published circuit directions are left-hand for runways 03, 09, 15 and right-hand 21, 27, 33. Circuit height is 1,000 feet AAL (1,400 feet AMSL).<ref name=sop/>
===Reporting points=== The standard ATZ reporting points are [[Perth Racecourse]] (at Scone), [[Stanley, Perthshire|Stanley]], [[Coupar Angus]], [[Newburgh, Fife|Newburgh]] and [[Bridge of Earn]].<ref name=sop/>
==Airspace== The airport is in the Scottish Centre (EGPX0839) [[area control center|area control centre]].
While [[Dundee Airport]] is {{convert|7.5|NM|lk=in}} away, to the east, its category C instrument approach for runway 09 encroaches the Perth Airport ATZ at 1,800 feet AAL. This procedure is used by Dundee commercial and training traffic irrespective of the runway in use. In an easterly wind, traffic may come as far west as the Perth overhead.<ref name=sop/>
[[Jet aircraft]] regularly operate in the vicinity the airport due to its proximity to the former [[RAF Leuchars]], {{convert|17|NM|lk=in}} to the southeast. They can fly as low as 250 feet AAL.<ref name=sop/>
==Navigation== The [[VHF omnidirectional range|DVOR]] "PTH" is located immediately to the east of the runway 15 threshold.<ref name=sop/> Its frequency is 110.40 MHz and has a range of {{convert|130|NM|lk=in}}, with a calibrated [[Magnetic declination#Air navigation|declination]] of 3° west.<ref>[https://ourairports.com/navaids/PTH/Perth_VOR_GB/ PTH VOR, Perth] − Our Airports</ref> The [[Waypoint#In aviation|waypoint]] "PTH" is also in the vicinity, part of the UP600 [[Airway (aviation)|jet airway]]. It has a [[magnetic declination]] of 1.8° west.<ref>[http://www.fallingrain.com/waypoint/UK/PTH.html PTH] – Falling Rain.com</ref>
==References== ===Citations=== {{reflist}}
===Bibliography=== *{{wikicite|ref={{harvid|Jefford|2001}}|reference=Jefford, C.G. ''RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912''. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1988. {{ISBN|1-84037-141-2}}.}} *Allan, James (2002). Wings Over Scotland. Tervor. {{ISBN|0-9538191-1-6}}
==External links == *[http://perthairport.co.uk/ Perth Airport Official Website] *[https://chartfox.org/EGPT#EGPT_74593 Aerodrome chart] – Chartfox *[http://acsflighttraining.co.uk/ ACS Flight Training] *[http://acsaviation.com/ Perth Airport Operator] *[http://www.scottishaeroclub.org.uk Scottish Aero Club] *[http://www.airservicetraining.co.uk Air Service Training] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160529050810/https://www.airservicetraining.co.uk/ |date=29 May 2016 }} *[http://acsengineering.co.uk/ ACS Engineering]
{{Airports in Scotland}} {{Airports in the United Kingdom}}
{{authority control}}
[[Category:Airports in Scotland]] [[Category:Transport in Perth, Scotland]] [[Category:Buildings and structures in Perth, Scotland]] [[Category:Airports established in 1936]]