The surf reef's approval ended years of speculation over whether it would go ahead, during which time world experts carried out feasibility studies and local residents were consulted.
Air power enthusiasts had been making that claim continuously since the Wright Brothers proved the feasibility of heavier-than-air flight in 1903, so by the time the new millennium rolled around there were plenty of people in the Air Force ready to believe it.
Fresh ideas were needed, he said, to finance road improvements at a time of tight government finances and set the Treasury and Department for Transport to work on a feasibility study.