Planes have begun using Manston again for freight flights

The airport has been taken over by Infratil, which bought it for �17m after the collapse of Planestation.

Infratil's chief executive said it was only a "trickle" of cargo flights but was pleased to have any planes there.

He said he was due to meet with 15 airlines about the possibility of using Manston for passenger flights again.

The airport lost its Civil Aviation Authority licences to carry passengers and freight when Planestation went into receivership, but Infratil had the licences restored earlier this month.

'Not speculating'

The first plane to fly into Manston was an Air Atlanta Boeing 747, which flew from Gatwick to have an engine changed, followed by freight planes landing to take a cargo of chemicals to Venezuela.

Infratil chief executive Steve Fitzgerald told BBC Radio Kent he was encouraged by the start of freight operations but admitted the new operation was still in its early stages.

Steve Fitzgerald will meet with airlines about passenger flights

He said: "Some of the customers who previously used the airport have indicated they are willing to come back, which is great.

"But we are very aware we are under the microscope and we need to deliver a great service to make sure they keep coming back.

"We are in discussions with a number of operators, but I am going to be really confident in saying we're close when my pen is poised over a contract, I'm not going to be speculating.

"We're working very hard but, as predicted, the passenger business will take a bit longer to secure.

"I'll be going to an important conference in Copenhagen in about 10 days and meeting with around 15 scheduled airlines and putting the case to them that they should be interested in Kent."

Mr Fitzgerald said he was liaising with Thanet District Council and Kent County Council to come up with the best arguments to persuade companies to use Manston.

He said he hoped to have around 600,000 to 700,000 passengers using Manston annually within three or four years.