Stansted £1.1bn investment programme to include £600m terminal extension

Stansted has revealed details of a five-year £1.1 billion investment programme, which includes a £600 million extension to the airport’s existing terminal.

The terminal development will help enable the airport serve up to 43 million passengers a year, which in turn will create up to 5,000 new on-site jobs and see the airport’s economic contribution double to £2 billion annually.

Last year the airport served more than 27 million passengers.

The plans were first announced at the government’s International Investment Summit on Monday (October 14) and follow Stansted reporting record-breaking passenger numbers for each month in 2024.

Stansted served a record-breaking 29.3 million passengers in the year to September 2024, the busiest 12-month period in the airport’s history, and the extended terminal will improve capacity at busy times and provide the extra space required to accommodate forecast growth.

Planning permission for the extension was secured last October and Stansted today released images to showcase its plans for the first time.

Other improvements will be an enlarged security hall and next-generation security equipment; an on-site solar farm; refurbishment of the toilet facilities; and an airfield taxiway upgrade.

Gareth Powell, Stansted’s managing director, said: “We aim to add even more choice of airlines to continue growing our extensive route network.

“We are already welcoming a record number of passengers, with people drawn to the fact we give them a great choice of destinations, at excellent value and with fantastic access into central London and the whole of the East of England.

“We are unique among major airports in operating a single terminal, which means we can give people a simple, efficient and seamless experience.

“These exciting plans mean we are able to retain all those benefits, while introducing an array of new facilities and giving us the space we need to grow.

“We’re confident our investment plans will boost our competitiveness within the London aviation market, as well as supporting economic growth, jobs and vital international connectivity for London and the east of England.”

Over the past 12 months, several new airlines have started flying from Stansted for the first time, including Royal Jordanian and Sun Express, plus the return of British Airways, boosting the number of destinations on the departure board to more than 200 this summer.