Billionaire hotel owner submits proposal for London Heathrow's expansion

BILLIONAIRE Surinder Arora has submitted his own plans for the expansion of London's Heathrow Airport. 

The 'Heathrow West' proposal, put forward by Arora Group, Bechtel and Scott Brownrigg, shows a shorter third runway extending to just 2,800-metres instead of 3,500-metres, negating the need to bridge over the M25 motorway. 

There would also be a new Terminal 6, built just to the west of the existing Terminal 5.

Above: Arora Group's proposed site plan. Image courtesy of Arora Group.

Arora Group said its plans could see the third runway operational by 2035, with the new terminal opening in two phases in 2036 and 2040. The cost estimate for the plans is described as "under £25BN" – which in the UK is roughly equivalent to building a quarter of a high speed railway between the outskirts of London and Birmingham.

Above: How part of the proposed Terminal 6 might appear. Below: Terminal 6 would be positioned to the west of Terminal 5. Image courtesy of Arora Group.

In January 2025, the UK government backed plans for a third runway at London Heathrow and invited proposals to be put forward. At the time, Chancellor Rachel Reeves said adding a third runway to what is one of the world’s busiest airports could add up to 100,000 jobs.

The last official plans tabled in 2019 indicated a third runway being positioned to the north west of the current airfield, demolishing the towns of Harmondsworth and Longford and partly bridging over the M25 motorway.

Above: Plans tabled in 2019 showed a new third runway bridging over the UK's M25 motorway. Image courtesy of Heathrow Airport.

Plans for a third runway have been discussed for more than 60 years, almost since the airport’s original transition to becoming a commercial hub. Several UK governments have announced support for a runway, only to see the project meet significant opposition in the consultation and planning processes.

Many living in the neighbouring towns that may be demolished for expansion have had the prospect of the third runway hanging over them for decades, and have been unable to find buyers for their homes. Some welcome the chance to finally have their properties compulsory purchased so they can move on with their lives.