Man ends 20-year airport sign prank that cost him £25K

A man who's spent £25,000 on a very realistic, but fake airport sign, has decided to take it down.

Journalist, Nicholas Whitehead, has spent a fortune on maintaining the billboard for a whopping 20 years, in Powys Village in Wales.

The sign, which has been up since 2002, has become a landmark that locals are pretty proud of.

You'd normally see it by travelling eastwards along the A44 between Rhayader and Kington, BBC reports.

But if you're unlucky enough to fall for the prank, you'll end up on a random field, on the outskirts of the village of Llandegley, Powys, which is funny if you're not already late for your flight.

Whitehead explained: "It started off as a wild conversation with friends one evening in Llandegley.

"We thought of renting a sign for something that wasn't really there, possibly a project that didn't exist, and we settled on the airport.

"It started off as a bit of a joke, then we realised it was actually possible. It was made by Wrexham Signs, given the OK, one thing led to another and there it is."

"As a journalist, whatever you do, someone, somewhere, is going to get upset about it".

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It even has its own dedicated Facebook page, giving followers regular 'updates'.

Whitehead added: "In 20 years, I haven't had a single complaint about Llandegley International.

"Loads of people love it, some people might not get it. But as far as I know, nobody is upset or angry about it. That's a first for me."

With the billboard costing roughly £1,500 to maintain, Whitehead has now decided to call it quits.

He said: "I think the airport is established now - and I think the establishment should take it on.

"It's not exactly a national monument - but it is a national treasure."

Local Holly Richards explained: "I've lived in Llandegley all my life. The sign is part of our community.

"It's a bit of a running gag - people joke that they've just flown into Llandegley and they're flying back out tomorrow. It's a wonderful feature."

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William Jones, 20, added: "Every time we see it, me and my mates have a giggle. I asked my mum all about it when I was young, and I'd like to be able to tell my own kids about it one day."

Farmer Neil Richards said: "There's no end of people who have seen and heard about the sign who've stopped at our farm on the edge of the Radnor Forest, asking how to find the airport.

"Apparently two American airforce planes landed nearby as part of a military mission in World War Two."

Whitehead believes that the airport will still exist as the people 'make the airport what is is'.

But what is certain is that the Llandegley International Airport will be remembered as one of the greatest in joke history.