Finningley

infobox UK place
country = England
official_name= Finningley
latitude= 53.4833
longitude= -0.9833
map_type= South Yorkshire
population =
metropolitan_borough= Doncaster
metropolitan_county= South Yorkshire
region= Yorkshire and the Humber
constituency_westminster=
post_town= DONCASTER
postcode_district = DN9 3
postcode_area= DN
dial_code= 01302
os_grid_reference= SK6745699021

Finningley is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster, in South Yorkshire, England. Historically part of Nottinghamshire, Finningley lies along the A614 road, about six miles from the centre of Doncaster, at coord|53|29|N|0|59|W|, and at an elevation of around seven metres above sea level. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 1,442 [ [http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=3&b=790656&c=DN9+3DQ&d=16&e=15&g=363808&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=0&s=1207395692826&enc=1&dsFamilyId=779 "Area: Finningley CP (Parish)"] ] . The parish church of Holy Trinity is Norman, with a 13th century chancel [Pevsner, Nikolaus. 1979. "The Buildings of England:Nottinghamshire". page 127. Harmondsworth, Middx. Penguin.] .

Finningley is known for its airport, formerly RAF Finningley. The base housed a 'V' force of Vulcan bombers during the Cold War, and for 35 years it hosted a regular air show which, by the 1990s, was the largest one-day military air show in the country. Fact|date=April 2008 However, the end of the Cold War led to the base being closed in April 1996, with the air show dying with it.

The 2741 metre long runway, currently the second longest in the north of England, was sufficiently large to take even Concorde, and in the period after the closure of the RAF base there were several campaigns to turn Finningley into a commercial airport for the underserved South Yorkshire region (as well as Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire and the East Riding of Yorkshire).

Plans for the conversion were finally approved in 2003, with the first flights in April 2005. It is anticipated that the airport, renamed "Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield", will reach maximum capacity by 2014. Planning permission for a new railway station to serve it was recently granted [ [http://www.railnews.co.uk/news/general/2008/07/02-doncaster-robin-hood.html Take Off For Airport Station Plans] "Railnews.co.uk". Accessed 2008-09-04] - the former station serving it and the village having closed back in 1961.

Leon Motors, a bus company based in Finningley, operates buses in Doncaster. Formed in 1922, it was taken over by MASS of North Anston during 2004.

Finningley is also home to a famous Motocross venue called [http://www.doncastermotoparc.co.uk Doncaster Moto Parc] which attracts [Motocross] riders from all over the country.

References

External links

* [http://www.robinhoodairport.com/ Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield]