MORE than 8,000 jobs could be on the horizon for the North-East as part of a massive national airport expansion plan.

Last night, Teesside Airport bosses said at least 800 new jobs would definitely be created there in the next decade.

And Newcastle Airport said it expected the number of people it employed on site to double to 6,000 in the next ten years.

The region's holidaymakers will be given a wider variety of destinations at nearby airports, with Florida added to the list of sun spots within reach of Teesside Airport.

The airport, near Darlington, is hoping to extend its runway by 700 metres to cope with more freight flights and attract more than three million passengers a year, instead of the current 700,000.

Newcastle also hopes to extend its runway and range of destinations.

The new proposals came as the Government outlined its options to meet the expected huge demand for air travel over the next 30 years.

As expected, the options included a third runway at Heathrow airport and a new four-runway airport at Cliffe, in north Kent.

Transport Secretary Alistair Darling stressed that doing nothing was "not an option" as existing capacity would not meet demand.

The plans will now go out to consultation for four months, with Government policy only being announced in an aviation White Paper next year.

The Government claims growth at the two North-East airports could boost economic regeneration in the region, creating as many as 4,800 new airport jobs and a further 3,400 extra jobs in the supply chain.

Newcastle Airport is likely to need to deal with an increase from 3.1 million passengers per year to as many as 9.4 million over the same period.

But Hugh Lang, managing director of Teesside Airport, injected a note of caution into potentially over-optimistic figures. He said: "The Government's figures are even higher than ours - they are coming up with some bullish figures based on predictions over the next 30 years.

"But I can say that there will definitely be at least 800 jobs coming to Teesside."

He said the priority was passengers, although it is hoped Teesside will handle 50,000 - 60,000 tonnes of freight if expansion plans went ahead.

The renewed hopes for increased freight come only three months after the death knell was finally sounded for its long-awaited South Side freight development.

That grand plan had boldly predicted it would end up handling 750,000 tonnes a year, creating 6,000 jobs in the process.

Newcastle Airport's chief executive, John Parkin, said: "National policy needs to recognise the huge opportunity which exists at regional airports."

Alistair Arkley, chairman of the Tees Valley Partnership and board member of regional development agency One NorthEast, said: "If there is going to be a huge growth in traffic through Teesside as a result of this expansion, that has to be very good news."

He believed both Teesside and Newcastle airports could complement each other by concentrating on their strengths.

Stockton North MP Frank Cook also offered enthusiastic support. He said: "The increase in passenger traffic could be achieved without adverse environmental effects."

But the planned expansion threatens to reignite a bitter battle by nearby villagers, who fought hard against the South Side plans.

Doris Jones, Darlington borough ward councillor for nearby Middleton-St-George, said: "There's got to be a stop point and this is that point. I don't see how it can expand.