is a town located in
South Ayrshire on the central west coast of
Scotland approximately 60 miles to the south-west of
Glasgow , at the 2001 census it had a population of 15,478. It adjoins the larger town of
Ayr , the centre of which is approximately 2 miles south.
Prestwick is famous for being the home of
Open Golf . The world's first Open
Golf Championship was played at the Prestwick Old Course in 1860 and the first twelve Open Championships were played there until 1872 (the Championship was not played in 1871). The town also hosts two other golf courses, St. Nicholas and St. Cuthberts. St. Nicholas is a traditional links course on the southern half of the town.
Prestwick has been the centre of Scotland's aviation industry since the
1930 s.
Prestwick Airport is a major international airport that caters for a number of
Low-cost Airlines including
Ryanair and
Wizz Air . It also is a principal hub for air freight -
Polar Air Cargo operates a fleet of
Boeing 747 cargo aircraft from its Prestwick base. In addition,
BAE Systems ,
Goodrich Corporation ,
Spirit Aerosystems and
GE Aircraft Engines have maintenance/manufacturing facilities adjacent to the airfield.
Ryanair also has a major maintenance facility at Prestwick. In July 2005 Prestick airport served as the main transport hub for visiting dignitaries attending the
G8 conference in
Gleneagles .
As well as the airport, Prestwick is one of the cornerstones of the UK
Air Traffic Control system, controlling 70% of UK airspace. This is in addition to being one half of the
Shanwick Oceanic Control centre, which oversees all North Atlantic air traffic on the European side.
Prestwick's main secondary school is Prestwick Academy and there are a number of primaries in Prestwick - Glenburn, Kingcase and St Ninian's. The outlying villages of Monkton and Symington's primary schools also 'feed' the secondary school alongwith Heathfield primary in Ayr. St Ninian's primary is the
Roman Catholic primary in the town and it's pupils can go to Queen Margaret Academy in
Ayr or any other secondary school in the area, on leaving primary school.
From
Bruce to
James VI Of Scotland , numerous Kings have traversed the coastal walks in and around and
Troon . Travelling to the north for example, from
Ayr ,
William The Lion may have embarked on the shortest journey along the coast, through and
Monkton and on to
Irvine and
Kilwinning .
On march 3rd, 1960, a rather modern king arrived at
Prestwick Airport .
Elvis Presley , whose name is possibly derived from , landed only once on
British soil and this short visit has become a local legend for all
Ayrshire Prestley fans.
The name Presley (or Prestley, Priestly or Pressley) literally means 'Priest Lee'. Lee, is still used across Scotland and was the term given to a clearing within a woodland or a type of field (with intermittant trees) enclosure in southern Scotland.
