The UK’s largest airport operator, Manchester Airports Group, has called on government to deliver on its pledge to ease testing requirements for international arrivals in a bid to support the recovery of the aviation sector.
While the Health Secretary removed the 11 Southern African countries added to the red list over Omicron concerns, requirements for international arrivals to take both a private pre-departure and Day 2 PCR test remain in place.
MAG served 2.2 million passengers in November across Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands airports. The month was the second consecutive month of less onerous travel restrictions, and the same month in which leisure travel could resume between the UK and USA.
However, November passenger numbers revealed last week remained at 58% of pre-pandemic numbers, and fell by more than a quarter in the two weeks since enhanced testing requirements were reintroduced.
The number of passengers served in November was more than 20% higher than in September, demonstrating the demand for international travel and that cost, inconvenience and uncertainty of restrictions were the primary barrier for passengers over the summer months, where traffic remained 80% down on 2019 levels.
Charlie Cornish, MAG CEO (pictured) said:
“Our passenger performance in November showed how consumer confidence grew strongly as soon as restrictions on international travel were lifted.
“Our industry supported the re-introduction of testing requirements, which have done their part in slowing the arrival of the Omicron variant.
“However, now there is widespread domestic transmission of the variant across the UK, there can no longer be any justification for maintaining these costly and damaging restrictions.
“The news that all countries will be removed from the red list is positive recognition that they serve little purpose once the variant is circulating widely, but the same is true for the testing requirements which remain.
“Aviation has been hit harder by Covid measures than any other part of the economy. The latest testing requirements are already undermining the strong recovery we were starting to see.
“We need the Government to act swiftly to minimise the disruption to travel and reduce the costs for families travelling over the Christmas, as well as supporting the recovery of our critically-important sector.”
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