Manchester Airports Group reaches 62% of pre-pandemic traffic

Manchester Airports Group – which owns and operates Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands airports – served 2.4 million passengers in February, making it the busiest month since the pandemic began.

This was equivalent to 62% of the traffic seen in February 2019 – the highest proportion since the Covid outbreak hit travel.

These latest figures mean that the recovery of MAG airports has now surpassed the levels seen in November 2021, when passenger numbers peaked at 58% of 2019 levels.

That was before Omicron travel restrictions saw passenger numbers fall back again by about a half.

The removal of the UK’s inbound testing requirements in time for the half-term holidays meant more than one million passengers flew from each of Manchester and Stansted airports in February.

MAG is now calling on the government to remove the remaining travel measures, including the Passenger Locator Form (PLF), at the earliest opportunity.

The group expects passenger numbers to continue rising so it is recruiting for hundreds of new roles across its three airports.

Charlie Cornish, MAG chief executive, said: “The rate at which we have seen travel recover after the setback of Omicron restrictions is hugely encouraging for the aviation sector.

“The number of passengers that travelled through our airports in February shows the sheer demand for international travel that exists once people are freed from testing and other restrictions.

“Now that the government has made clear that it will only consider implementing new public health measures at the border in extreme circumstances, we are well on the way to a sustained recovery as we head into the summer season.