AVIATION experts in Llanbedr are in line for a busy year as they aim to make the airfield the number one choice as the UK’s first spaceport.

An operational spaceport could lead to spaceplanes carrying passengers and small satellites into space. Llanbedr is currently one of five sites currently being considered by the UK Government.

Snowdonia Aerospace chief executive Lee Paul said: “The past 18 months have been about creating the right operating environment, completing the first phase of investment and getting us ready for the future.

“Already the site has been used to test civil and military craft, wide ranging campaigns from fisheries enforcement projects to hosting a multinational military training exercise involving Malaysian, Japanese and US forces.

“We hope that new developments in 2017 will mean that Llanbedr is even more appealing to world-wide investment. We are now working with partners to put together a package of investments such as on site accommodation, better site access and licensing to instil even greater investor confidence.”

The airfield at Llanbedr has all the attributes of a former RAF site, plus state-of-the-art facilities following significant investment with more already underway.

“This year, the site has been used by civil and defence bodies but we’re also seeing the much-needed economic benefits that businesses are bringing to the area,” Mr Paul said.

“We are supporting 15 companies and 50 jobs on site and our analysis suggests that the next phase of investment could see the site support over 100 jobs and deliver some £4.2m to the local economy."

Read the full story in this week’s north editions of the Cambrian News