A war of words has broken out between Leeds Bradford International Airport and the firm behind a potential new rival.

Peel Holdings plc, the company driving the £80 million Doncaster Finningley Airport scheme, has accused all three Yorkshire and Humber airports of running scared of healthy competition.

The company has been told that its plans, which are opposed by Leeds Bradford, Sheffield and Humberside airports, are to be the subject of a public inquiry.

The decision today sparked an angry response from the chairman of Peel Airports, Robert Hough.

He said: "The protesters against the development, including the three airports, have succeeded in delaying the development to further protect their own interests.

"We believe the airports in Yorkshire and Humber have failed the consumer, with five million passengers forced to leave the region to access flights. The only opportunity the region has of redressing the balance is to have fair and open competition."

Leeds Bradford hit back by pointing out that most of Yorkshire's MPs backed the call for an inquiry as the only way to establish whether there was a real need for the new airport.

Chairman Tony Cairns also took issue with the accusation that the existing facilities were failing to meet the needs of travellers.

"Mr Hough's tantrums about the airports failing five million passengers smacks of a child who has had his rattle taken away," he said.

"There is a spare capacity within the Yorkshire airports at the moment to grow, and the only way Finningley could go ahead is to take routes from other areas - not us particularly, but the other two would be badly affected.

"Having a public inquiry is not self interest as far as Leeds Bradford is concerned. It's looking at what has happened in the past, looking at what normally happens, and not rushing in without the full picture."

Peel Holdings plc says 60,000 people have written in support of its proposals which, it claims, would create thousands of jobs.

Mr Cairns said one role of the public inquiry would be to examine such claims. "We will, of course, abide by any decision the inquiry comes to," he said.