The 25-acre ‘Duxford AvTech’ scheme will deliver 435,000 sq ft of innovation space aimed at accelerating low and zero carbon aircraft technology.

Imperial War Museums and Gonville & Caius College have brought in Henry Boot’s property arm HBD to spearhead the project, which sits within the Oxford-Cambridge Arc just off the M11.

A planning application is due before the end of the year.

The appointment builds on HBD’s growing innovation portfolio, following the green light for the £1bn Golden Valley scheme in Cheltenham, which includes the 160,000 sq ft IDEA National Cyber Innovation Centre.

Henry Boot chief executive Tim Roberts said the Duxford scheme would be a transformative project, reinforcing Cambridge’s reputation as a global hub for research and technology.