Stansted and Manchester announce record-smashing figures
London Stansted and Manchester airports recorded their busiest ever Christmas, reporting year on year growth for December of 8.5% and 20% respectively.
2016 was also the busiest year on record for both MAG-owned airports, which handled more than 24.3 million and 25.6 million passengers respectively.
At Stansted, 2016 was the busiest year in almost a decade, the previous highest total of 23.8 million having been record in 2007.
However, the increase in passenger numbers was achieved with 25,000 fewer flights than in 2007, which the airport said was due to the efficiency of flight operations and aircraft operating with fewer empty seats.
Stansted CEO Andrew Cowan said: "We are now serving more passengers than at any time in the airport’s history, adding over 1.75 million passengers in the last year alone, but doing it in a more efficient and sustainable way.
"We’ve seen positive growth from many of our airlines, particularly Ryanair who experienced a fantastic year and added 1.5 million passengers, and 2016 also saw British Airways start flights from Stansted for the very first time as well as the announcement that Jet2 will open its first base in the south of England this summer."
Manchester Airport CEO Ken O’Toole said: "Last year was an historic one that saw a number of major milestones celebrated at the airport. Passing 25 million passengers in a year was a huge achievement and we also saw the launch a number of key long haul services to the likes of Beijing, Houston and Los Angeles.
"We expect continued growth in 2017, with route launches to San Francisco, Boston and Muscat to come in the Spring. Looking ahead to the rest of the year we continue to look at expanding our route network to ensure we connect the north to the rest of the world."
Stansted handled more than 1.85 million passengers last month, easily surpassing the previous record for December of 1.76 million passengers in 2006.
Manchester handled more than 1.8 million passengers in December, pushing its annual total to more than 25.6 million, two million more than in 2015.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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