THE businessman behind the imminent expansion of Carlisle Airport says it could fly as many as 160,000 passengers over the next three years.

After battling for more than a decade, former Stabart Group boss Andrew Tinkler has named the day when commercial passenger fights will lift off from the new rebranded Carlisle Lake District Airport.

Stobart Group has teamed up with Loganair to offer regular flights to London Southend, Belfast, and Dublin.

The service will start in 80 days, on June 4.

Tinkler says the airport is now poised to become a "gateway" to the Lake District, capturing a significant part of the area's £2.72 billion a year tourist trade.

The millionaire businessman told The Cumberland News: "With Carlisle Lake District Airport, we've done our bit. We've set it up to make it sustainable. It will benefit the Cumbrian economy.

"If everybody supports it, it will have a chance."

Politicians and other community leaders welcomed the development, saying it has the potential to be economically "transformational".

Carlisle MP John Stevenson said: "This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to really push our economy in a way that hasn't been possible for many years.

"In the past, we've had one or two things going on which have been helpful, but this new service coincides with various other initiatives, including the Borderlands Growth Deal, which will help us achieve a critical mass of developments."

Mr Stevenson's Conservative colleague James Duddridge, the MP for Rochford and Southend, spoke of the impact on his area following the expansion of London Southend Airport, which Stobart Group acquired in 2008.

"It's been transformational," he said.

"Nothing in last quarter of a century has come anywhere close to transforming Southend as this regional airport has.

"It's gone from offering one or two flights a week to two destinations to flying more than a million passengers [per year] to something like 35 destinations. It's generated employment, had an impact on house prices, and changed the perception of the town.

"The image of it as a Victorian seaside town in decline has been replaced by one of a vibrant town with lots of cultural activity, which is a good place to do business; which is a hop, skip and a jump away from London.

"It's 45 minutes to Liverpool Street Station.

"John Stevenson has been driving this [Carlisle Airport's passenger flight plan] forward, and we intend to take business delegations back and forwards between Southend and Carlisle.

"The new service [there] will drive tourism, and effectively bring Carlisle closer to London. It will have a massive impact on Carlisle's economy."

Gill Haigh, managing director of Cumbria Tourism, said: “We welcomed 45 million visitors to the county last year, but a large proportion were day trippers to the Lakes.

"Our marketing strategy has a key focus on encouraging visitors to stay in the county as a whole.

"New flights though Carlisle will create alternative travel options and Cumbria Tourism is working in partnership with the Airport to encourage new and existing visitors to enjoy more of our iconic landscapes and world-class experiences.”