Doncaster Sheffield Airport and the adjacent Innovation Quarter employment land site is are come under public ownership in a new proposed deal awaiting approval from South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA), Doncaster Council and Peel Land.

The airport proposal will be subject for formal approval at the SYMCA Board on 27 October, and the plans to buy the land are awaiting agreement from the Board of Developers Peel. Once approved, SYMCA can buy the airport and land for development.

South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard said: “Four years ago, we were told that our airport would be closing. But alongside Ros Jones, I said I would do anything I could to save DSA, and I meant it. 

“Which is why after months of negotiations and the growing flexibility afforded to us by the government’s devolution agenda, today we can announce that we have come to an agreement for SYMCA to buy the airport and Innovation Quarter employment land from Peel. 

“When the airport closed, almost everything was against us; the owners did not want to sell, we had no legal powers to intervene or stop the airport from closing, and no backing from the government at the time. Today, the future for DSA is bright, with the airport back in our hands, the sky’s the limit.”

The deal would mark a major milestone in the region’s progress towards reopening the airport, which has been closed since 2022. Plans for the airport include making it one of the UK’s leading hubs for sustainable aviation, advanced manufactoring and innovation.

The reopening would create thousands of jobs, attract private investment and overall position DSA as one of the most significant economic opportunities in South Yorkshire.

Freight services are set to return from Autumn 2027, with passenger services expected to return in Summer 2028, subject to completion of the necessary works needed.