THE head of Biggin Hill Airport has launched an attack on Bromley Council for disregarding public opinion in trying to stop its controversial expansion plans.

Andrew Walters, chief executive of Regional Airport Ltd, the company which owns the Biggin Hill site, was speaking following legal moves by the council to halt the transformation of the airport into a luxury terminus catering for business passengers.

Mr Walters said: “It seems staggering to me that taxpayers' money is being spent on something which goes against the majority of rate payers wishes.”

“This insistence conflicts directly with independent research carried out by the airportwhich shows that the public are in favour of the development.”

Bromley Council was at the Court of Appeal this week seeking to overturn a High Court decision last November which gave the airport the green light to go ahead with the development.

The council claims that plans to substantially increase the number of flights for business passengers fall outside the terms of the airport's lease.

However, Mr Walters retorted: “We are confident we understand the terms under which the we leased the airport and we believe the council is trying to change those terms.”

The Appeal Court decision is expected in four to six weeks time.

The Biggin Hill chief also hit back at campaign groups who are arguing increased amount of airport flights will spell a living hell for residents living under the flightpath, and will seriously upset the ecology of the area.

“I understand those concerns but they are not backed up with facts. They have been hugely inflated by anti-airport groups,” he said.

But Councillor Chris Maines, co-leader of Bromley Council, accused Mr Walters of not telling the whole truth.

He said: “This is a distortion of the truth.

“We have had unprecedented amount of people involved in consultation, all united in their opposition to the development of the airport.”