ABSTRACT

Most published histories of airport planning relate to decisions taken autonomously by national or local authorities on continents such as North America and Europe. Elsewhere, such as Africa, colonial governments had a large role in airport planning and provision. Using official government records at archives in Nairobi and London, this paper traces the layered and convoluted decision-making processes behind Britain's planning of airports in Kenya's capital city. Government ministries in London, and the British national airline, wanted new facilities in East Africa for post-War civil aircraft, but were unable to agree on which agency would bear what share of the cost. Kenya's own colonial authorities contested the need for and affordability of the colonial project. Disputes proceeded in a fog of engineering and financial assumptions and estimates. In 1953, approval of Nairobi's third – and current – international airport ended eight years of British-mediated surveys, negotiation and indecision about land and infrastructure on the urban edge.

摘要

大多数公开的机场规划历史都与国家或地方当局在北美和欧洲大陆上自主做出的决定有关。在非洲等其他地方，殖民地政府在机场规划和提供方面发挥着重要作用。本文利用内罗毕和伦敦档案馆中的官方政府记录，追溯了英国对肯尼亚首都机场的计划背后的分层而复杂的决策过程。伦敦的政府各部和英国国民航空公司希望在东非增添战后民用飞机的设施，但无法就哪个机构承担多少费用达成共识。肯尼亚自己的殖民当局对殖民项目的必要性和可承受性提出了质疑。争论在工程和财务假设与估计的迷雾中进行。1953年，内罗毕的第三个（也是目前的）国际机场的批准结束了由英国进行的长达八年的由英国进行的有关城市边缘土地和基础设施的调查，谈判和犹豫不决的决定。