6.2m passengers flew through a MAG airport in May

• UK’s largest airport group’s rolling 12-month passenger total was 66.4m passengers
• Manchester and London Stansted Airports celebrated record-breaking months
• Operational performance remained strong throughout the busy half-term period  

Manchester Airports Group (MAG) recorded a busy half-term period serving 6.2m passengers in May, an increase of 2.4% year-on-year.  

That brought MAG’s rolling 12-month passenger total to 66.4m passengers, an increase of 1.4% year-on-year. The group operates Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands Airports. 

A small part of Manchester Airport’s passenger operations continued to be affected by ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Despite this, the airport still marked a record-breaking month – serving 2.9m passengers across May – which was a 0.4% increase on 2025.  The airport’s rolling 12-month passenger total was 32.2m passengers, a 2.3% increase year-on-year.  

London Stansted served 2.9m passengers up 4.5% increase on 2025 and a record for the month of May.  This took the airport’s rolling 12-month passenger total to 30.2m passengers, 0.9% increase on last year.   

East Midlands airport welcomed more than 456,000 passengers across May, a 2.1% increase on 2025. The airport handled more than 36,000 tonnes of cargo across the month, up 5% year-on-year.  

Operational performance remained strong throughout the busy half-term period. 100% of passengers at London Stansted passed through security in 15 minutes or less. The figure was 99% at East Midlands and 94% at Manchester Airport.  

 Passengers: 

 Cargo: