Gloucestershire Airport is stepping in to provide support to Cardiff and Bristol Airports for the Champions League final on Saturday.

Thousands of fans and hundreds of VIP passengers will attend the showpiece match between Real Madrid and Juventus at Cardiff's Principality Stadium.

Airport operations director Darren Lewington said: "Cardiff and Bristol Airports are geared up for the major passenger charter aircraft bringing fans in for the event but have insufficient capacity to meet the demand for the over 100 corporate aircraft expected to attend the final from Europe and beyond.

"We have worked closely with the Welsh Football Association to provide additional resource and are extending our opening hours on Saturday and into the early hours of Sunday to accommodate departures after the match.

"We appreciate that our nearest neighbours won't enjoy the prospect of night departures and we do have an annual quota of 100 night flights permitted between the hours of 11pm to 6am within our Green Policy to ensure this is not a regular occurrence.

"The timing of any late departures will depend on how the game unfolds, with the possibility of extra time and penalties, plus the travel time from the stadium, but we're geared up to be ready throughout the night.

"This is obviously a 'one-off' major event and will provide a welcome boost to businesses throughout the region as demand for hotel accommodation, taxis and limousines soars."

Tim Atkins, managing director of place and economic development at Cheltenham Borough Council, added: "It is great that Gloucestershire Airport is able to play an important supporting role in hosting this major sporting event that will have significant economic benefits for the region.

"We hope that neighbouring residents will agree that the airport's support towards this major event is worthwhile."

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