Airport caught in Crosswind - John McLellan

​Last week I may have misled readers into believing the Crosswind development proposals for an old runway at Edinburgh Airport, branded Elements Edinburgh, is the airport’s plan.

A visualisation of the new development by Crosswind Developments Ltd

I should have realised that just because Crosswind Developments Limited’s official address on Companies House records is Edinburgh Airport, 2nd Floor, Terminal, Edinburgh, EH12 9DN, doesn’t mean it’s the airport’s scheme. And if I had double checked the current ownership of the runway site, I would have found it was “acquired“ by Crosswind Developments Limited (chair, ex-Chancellor Alistair Darling) from Edinburgh Airport in 2019.

But had I examined the accounts filed to Companies House I would have learnt the immediate parent company is called Green Midco Ltd which, through its wholly owned subsidiary Green Bidco Limited, owns Edinburgh Airport Limited, which is the operator of Edinburgh Airport. And on the board of Green Midco and Bidco (are you following this?) and Edinburgh Airport Ltd is Mr Michael McGhee. Mr McGhee is a director of Global Partnership Management LLP, which provides investment management services to Global Infrastructure Partners which lists Edinburgh Airport amongst its many interests around the world.

I should also point out that the reserve runway was decommissioned in 2017, so although it might look very like a reserve runway it’s nothing but a strip of old tarmac. To the untrained eye like mine, it’s not dissimilar to the one they keep having to repair for regular services. But let’s be clear, the Crosswinds’ scheme is definitely not Edinburgh Airport's plan. Happy to set the record straight.