London Oxford Airport is bidding to have a proposed £35 million science park granted planning permission.

The UK’s fifth-ranked busiest business aviation airport, said the facility will specialise in innovation and green technology.

It is also expected to drive innovations in motors, batteries, composites, hydrogen, synthetic and alternative fuels, supporting start-ups and projects associated with Oxford University.

A planning hearing on the Research and Development Science Park on land at the entrance to the airport in Kidlington was scheduled this week.

The scheme proposes five new research and development buildings housed in a green campus environment, offering over 200,400 sq ft.

The park will offer space for up to 17 tenants with units from around 7,700 sq ft, up to 56,300 sq ft for a complete building.

The airport has already started demolishing some old buildings, including the former 1960’s-era Oxford Aviation Services trainee accommodation block.

The project will take an estimated 24 months to complete.  Some of the positions will also have airside frontage, potentially more attractive for any aviation-related activities.

James Dillon-Godfray, head of business development at London Oxford Airport, said: “While Cambridge has arguably been a frontrunner on courting many R&D enterprises and start-ups in the last couple of decades, Oxford has definitely caught up.

“It’s very much the most vibrant, top choice city now for fostering innovation. This new initiative answers some of Oxfordshire’s demand for high-quality, laboratory-enabled space for technology and life science companies to grow and thrive.

“The scheme will sit alongside similar developments right next door at the new Oxford Technology Park and Begbroke Science Park, further cementing Oxford’s leading position in the life science and R&D research sectors,” he added.