Manchester Airport is flying high again today after being crowned UK Airport of the Year.
Britain’s third airport beat Heathrow, Gatwick and Birmingham among others in the over six million passenger category in the Airport Operators Association (AOA) awards. It received the accolade due to a phenomenal year of growth, increased destination choice and infrastructure investment.
Andrew Cowan, Chief Operating Officer for Manchester Airports Group, said: “We are absolutely delighted to beat off fierce competition and win such an esteemed award. It is testament to the continued hard work of all our airport staff, and we thank them for their ongoing commitment and diligence.
“It has been an incredibly successful year at Manchester Airport and we hope to soon see passenger numbers back over 22 million – a symbolic figure we’ve not seen since 2007.
“Over the last 12 months we have significantly grown, not just from a passenger point of view but from a destination perspective. This year we confirmed a direct route to Hong Kong, with Cathay Pacific, which will make Manchester the only airport outside London with a direct non-stop service to China.
“As well as adding more routes we also continue to develop and invest in the airport, including rapidly progressing our £800m Airport City project and connecting the airport to the region’s tramway, a feat we achieved with Metrolink over a year ahead of schedule. It is for reasons like these, I believe, made us a worthy winner in the awards.”
As well as connecting the North West to China, Manchester Airport has also confirmed routes to Miami, Jeddah, Toronto, Vienna and Pisa this year. As well as strengthening services to North America with increased capacity and frequency on routes to New York and Atlanta.
For more information see www.manchesterairport.co.uk
