Who owns Newcastle Airport? Newcastle International Airport is jointly owned by seven North East local authorities and a subsidiary of Aena, the Spanish state-owned airport operator, following the completion of a deal earlier this year that brought Europe's largest airport group into the region. The seven councils that make up LA7 are Newcastle, Sunderland, Gateshead, North Tyneside, Northumberland, Durham and South Tyneside. Boardroom now reflects the new ownershipThe airport's board has been refreshed to reflect Aena's arrival as a shareholder. Its executive directors remain chief executive Nick Jones, chief operating officer Richard Knight, chief financial officer Mark Hunt and chief corporate affairs officer Alice Andreasen.