Three regional airports in the UK have been sold to an international investment firm as a part of a £200 million deal. ICG, a London-listed investment firm, has reached an agreement with Rigby Group to acquire Norwich airport along with the airports in Exeter and Bournemouth.
A formal agreement concerning the acquisition of three regional airports—together accommodating over two million passengers each year—is scheduled to be finalised before the end of this month. According to the ICG, the airport’s passenger and cargo operations would be expanded. Steve Rigby, co-CEO of Rigby Group said: “Now is the right time for the next phase in Regional & City Airports’ growth in collaboration with an infrastructure fund with the investment capability and appetite to ensure these airports and their associated property reach their full potential.”
Norwich Airport, which serves 19 destinations and employs 250 people, welcomed almost 430,000 passengers in the year ending March 2025. Richard Pace, managing director of Norwich Airport, said the strategic partnership with ICG marks a “significant milestone” for Norwich Airport.
He said: “Over the past decade, we’ve made tremendous progress, expanding our route network and strengthening our role as a regional gateway. With the support of ICG, we now have an exciting opportunity to build on that success and unlock even more potential for our airport, our passengers, our workforce and the wider community.”
Bournemouth Airport which is currently undergoing a £50million investment programme became part of Rigby Group in 2017 and currently serves 48 destinations. The airport directly employs around 300 people and, in the year, ended March 2025 welcomed 1.1m passengers, an all-time record.
Steve Gill, managing director of Bournemouth Airport said: “Effectively, it’s an acquisition. ICG are acquiring the entire RCA Group. RCA as a business will remain exactly as it is. What is effectively changing is the parent company – from Rigby Group to ICG.
“There are no planned changes or restructuring. We remain committed to investing, developing facilities, and developing routes. It’s a very positive story. We’re building on a strong year, and this gives us momentum to continue improving what we offer.”
Steven Wiltshire, the airport’s managing director, called the deal “great news for Exeter and great news for Devon”. The airport currently offers flights to 27 destinations, including newly introduced daily service to Amsterdam with KLM, which commenced in March
Mr Wiltshire said Exeter could handle up to 1.2m passengers annually, about 400,000 more than current levels, before requiring major infrastructure upgrades.
He said: “Flights are pretty full, there’s some capacity on the routes we’re operating currently, but additional aircraft and new routes would help us reach that next level.”