Strong December performance for UK’s largest airports group sees MAG serve 60m passengers in 2023

·       MAG served 4.3m passengers in December 2023

·       Manchester and London Stansted both recorded their busiest Decembers ever

·       New £120m investment programme announced at East Midlands Airport

Manchester Airports Group (MAG) recorded a strong performance in December, during which 4.3m passengers passed through its airports.

That meant the month’s passenger total was 103% of 2019 levels, and up by a fifth year-on-year for the Group, which owns and operates Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands Airports.

London Stansted and Manchester both recorded their busiest Decembers on record, serving 2m passengers each – up 12.1% and 16.9% year-on-year respectively and both ahead of 2019 levels.

East Midlands Airport served more than 190,000 passengers across December, a figure which represented 93% of pre-pandemic traffic.

This performance means that MAG recorded a total of 60m passengers for the 2023 calendar year – a figure which matches the Group’s pre-pandemic annual total. London Stansted’s calendar year total of almost 28m passengers was its third busiest on record.  

Service levels across MAG airport remained high across December, where 100% of passengers passing through security in 15 minutes or less at East Midlands Airport, with the figure standing at 99% at Manchester Airport and 96% at London Stansted.

Last week, East Midlands Airport announced an investment programme of more than £120m to improve all aspects of the passenger experience over the next five years. The programme will include expanding the security hall to facilitate next generation scanning equipment, and an improvement to customer seating and heating and cooling in the terminal building. It will also see upgrades to the airport’s air traffic control systems and a reconstruction of its taxiways.

MAG CEO Ken O’Toole said: “I am pleased to see how well our airports performed in what is one our busiest months of the year - ensuring families could be reunited and people could enjoy their well-earned breaks over the festive period – while continuously offering high levels of customer service.

“This strength of performance over the entire calendar year is a demonstration of the choice, ease, and convenience our airports offer to millions of people across the UK and around the world. I am proud to see MAG once again serving 60m passengers annually following a strong recovery from the most difficult period in our industry’s history.

“The £120m investment in East Midlands Airport, alongside the £440m final phase of investment in Manchester’s Terminal 2 and plans to extend London Stansted’s terminal reinforces MAG’s commitment to improving the passenger experience and investing in a sustainable future for our sector, and the regions we serve.”

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