In March 2006 the site was split, with ownership of the central area including the runways transferred to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) who have continued to use it as a base for their air sea rescue helicopters.

[2] In April 2006, Gosport and Fareham Borough Councils issued a joint Planning Statement for Daedalus[3] stating that "There should be provision of leisure and community facilities which could complement existing facilities to the benefit of local residents" and "Future development should seek to maximise the benefit of the existing runways for general and private aviation use."

During its RN ownership the airfield had been used for a variety of groups, including the Portsmouth Naval Gliding Club (PNGC).

When the RN moved out in 1996, operational management of the airfield was taken over by Hampshire Police Air Support Unit (HPASU).

In October 2010 Hampshire Police Air Support Unit was closed and its tasks taken over by the newly formed South East Air Support Unit covering Hampshire, Sussex and Surrey from bases at RAF Odiham and Shoreham Airport.

Our intention is that development of the site will focus on new aviation and marine related businesses, exploiting access to the existing runways and the Solent.

The growth of commercial air transport at Southampton Airport some years ago left it with no capacity for general aviation (GA) aircraft.

CEMAST (Centre of Engineering, Manufacturing and Advanced Skills Training), part of Fareham College is completed on previously undeveloped land in the south east corner of the airfield.

In September 2017 it was announced that Solent Airport (Daedalus) is to open up scheduled flights, with destinations possibly including Alderney, Cardiff, Swansea and Exeter.

The charity stated this was because the airfield owners, Fareham Borough Council, had been unable to offer them a viable replacement to their current hangar, Belman 4, from which they had been served eviction notice for.

It is connected to the UK and French grids by cables running across the airfield and entering The Solent to the west.