Manchester Airport is celebrating three years since the first flight departed from its new-look Terminal 2, part of the airport’s £1.3 billion transformation programme.
The extended terminal opened in July 2021, more than doubling its footprint, however, fanfare was limited as a result of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic: just three flights departed on the day it opened its doors, with passengers and staff required to wear masks and follow social distancing rules.
Since then the new-look terminal has gone from strength to strength, serving more than 29.2 million people – over 800,000 passengers per month on average. A total of 21 airlines now operate flights to 109 different destinations from the terminal, with exciting new routes including Las Vegas and Shanghai launched from Terminal Two in recent months.
The terminal extension saw the addition of a new check-in hall, 10 new security lanes, a brand-new international departure lounge with a giant media screen and hexagon-shaped feature lighting, an immigration hall with 20 e-gates and 32 desks, and 35 new restaurants and shops in both Departures and Arrivals including an array of Northern eateries.
The new-look terminal’s crowning moment came last November when it was named as one of the world’s most beautiful airport terminals by the UNESCO-backed Prix Versailles architecture awards.
The second phase of the terminal’s transformation is now underway, with the original terminal building being given a complete overhaul to bring it up to the same specification as the extension. Once the project is completed in 2025, Terminal One will permanently close, and around three quarters of all Manchester Airport’s passengers will have the benefit of these new, state-of-the-art facilities.
Chris Woodroofe, Managing Director of Manchester Airport, said:
“It’s incredible to think that in three short years, almost 30 million people have departed or arrived in Manchester through our award-winning Terminal Two.
“This project is central to our vision to provide the people of the North with a world-class international hub that connects them with all four corners of the globe.
“We’re proud of the high-quality experience it delivers – reflected in a recent independent survey where 86% of passengers considered their experience to be good, very good or excellent.
“We’re all now very excited to see the culmination of the second phase of the transformation programme next year, which will bring a £1.3bn, 10-year project to a close and will give even more passengers a chance to experience what Terminal Two offers .”