In his regular column, a mood-swinging DAVID ANDREWS, chief executive of the York-based Yorkshire Tourist Board examines the gloom of war and the joy of the prospect of a new airport in our midst...

LAST month, I wrote of my concerns over the impact the war in Iraq would have on tourism in York and the rest of North Yorkshire.

Those concerns were justified. After a cautious but optimistic start to the year, with inbound tourism figures from the then British Tourist Authority showing a healthy 17 per cent increase nationally, the British Incoming Tour Operators Association revealed that a different story was unfolding during February.

The number of overseas visitors arriving that month fell by 8.4 per cent, with some operators reporting numbers halved.

Significantly, forward bookings taken that month were down 13.8 per cent.

These figures reflected the period before the outbreak of war. Undoubtedly the figures for March and the first half of April will reveal further drops.

There is, however, a silver lining, albeit a thin one. The impact of the war on visitor patterns will not be as long lived as that of foot and mouth.

But, at the risk of sounding like a Cassandra of doom, there is yet another possible crisis looming on the horizon of international tourism - Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).

The killer bug, our latest import from Hong Kong, has moved up the agenda and its impact on people's willingness to get on board an aeroplane is yet to be seen.

But...here's the good - even great - news. The Government has given Peel Airports the go-ahead to redevelop the former RAF Finningley in South Yorkshire as a commercial airport. At first glance, many people may ask what effect will an airport near Doncaster have on tourism in York and North Yorkshire? sThe answer is simple - it only takes about 23 minutes by train to get to York from Doncaster.

With a link from the airport to the station, visitors would face a very small journey to get to the ancient capital and from there, the rest of North Yorkshire; its coast, countryside and cities.

The Finningley site is a national asset and will not only play a key role in the regeneration of South Yorkshire, but will bring economic benefits to the whole region through the development of the airport.

This will be vital in determining where future economic activity will be.

But it doesn't stop here. To ensure that the region is fully accessible and customer requirements are met, we have to take a long, hard look at the region's transport infrastructure.

The next step on the agenda will be the upgrade of the East Coast main line, reducing travelling times even further and increasing the region's desirability and vision of being a top visitor destination in the long-term.

The launch of Jet2, the low-cost airline at Leeds Bradford Airport reinforces this vision and enables Yorkshire to successfully compete as a short-break visitor destination. This unlocks untold potential for the key markets of Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and France and opens up a wealth of opportunities for the region as we start to see inbound tourism flourish.

It is a fact that a strategic approach to tourism can only succeed if the product infrastructure is in place.

It is only by this "joined-up" approach that we can make maximum impact and get the results the region most deservedly needs.

Updated: 09:16 Tuesday, April 22, 2003