Manchester: Airport Consultative Committee (MACC) - Minutes

[marni1971]

The entrance to the ground level arrivals area of the East MSCP has been re-surfaced with markings for drop off, new digital signage for which zone has available spaces and green/red overhead lights to indicate vacant bays.

Gotcha. This was the original kerb side public arrivals pick up in 1993; they’ve gone almost full circle! This must mean the M56 ramp and drop off zone on the roof is officially dead and buried but they’re sticking to their numbers forecast. Bit of a messy solution mind.

 

[LS@MAN]

Thanks as always for the info @Scottie Dog from the MACC.

Interesting comment from Chris Woodroofe ref Ryanair's transfer over to T1 departures at the end of the year...this would suggest that MAG has or will likely request an extension to the DoT for the continued use of the current security scanning equipment in T3 until they can accommodate Ryanair in T1 departures.
This is not a huge surprise since we already can see and has been mentioned on this forum previously, that the phase 2 of the MAN TP seems to be behind schedule. So therefore delaying the transfer of current T1/T3 airlines over to T2 and of course inevitably delaying Ryanair's move over to what will become the new T3 departures (in T1).

 

[Scottie Dog]

For anybody who might be interested yhe next MACC meeting is scheduled for this Friday, 11th July.
The meeting is open to the public - strictly as observers only, with no right to raise issues or make comment. If anybody is interested in attending then please send let me know.

 

[Scottie Dog]

My apologies for the delay in providing a copy of the Managing Director's report to the MACC. I hope you will find it of interest, however please note that I have omitted certain graphs that relate to graphs that I can not reproduce on here.

1. INTRODUCTION
The second quarter of 2025 saw Manchester Airport continue its impressive momentum, delivering strong
performance across all key areas. During the period from April to June 2025, Manchester Airport served a total of over 8.5 million passengers (8,574,265) reflecting a 4.9% increase compared to the same period in 2024. The individual monthly breakdown is as follows, April (2,633,521), May (2,920,820) and June (3,019,924). This means Manchester Airport’s 12 month rolling total is over 31.5 million passengers (31,534,328).
During the second quarter of 2025, Manchester Airport sustained strong performance in both security and
operational metrics. Security efficiency remained high, with 99.3% of passengers processed through security in 15 minutes or less exceeding our 95% target. Inbound baggage handling also performed well, with 95% of bags delivered within the agreed service level timeframes. Meanwhile, on-time performance for the quarter reached 69.4%, slightly below our 72% target.
A key highlight of the second quarter was the successful launch of our new direct service to Mumbai, operated by IndiGo. This milestone has been over a decade in the making, and we were delighted to mark the occasion by welcoming IndiGo’s CEO to a business reception at aether in the morning, followed by an evening dinner with representatives from businesses and partners from across the region who will benefit from the direct connectivity. We look forward to working closely with IndiGo to ensure the success of this service and look towards future growth.
To conclude, the second quarter of 2025 has been another strong period for Manchester Airport, reinforcing our upward trajectory. With this strong momentum behind us, we’re poised to take on what looks to be our busiest summer yet.

2. GOVERNMENT ENGAGEMENT AND POLICY
Throughout the second quarter of 2025, Manchester Airport participated in a range of high-profile events to represent its interests – and had the opportunity to host one of its own – continuing our successful stakeholder engagement with key influencers and partners.
Manchester Airports Group Trade Barometer Event
On the 1st of May, MAG hosted its inaugural Trade Barometer event in partnership with the Growing Together Alliance. The event highlighted the outlook of British exporters and businesses as they look to expand into an increasing number of European and emerging markets in the months ahead.
Insights from the Trade Barometer suggest that the UK economy could experience short-term resilience against potential tariff-related disruptions, even as trade negotiations with the United States continue. However, the survey, which captured responses from over 2,000 businesses nationwide, also pointed to a more pressing, long-term challenge: encouraging more companies outside of London to engage in international trade, with Manchester Airport playing a vital role as a regional catalyst.
Notably, the findings revealed a regional disparity in confidence, with businesses in the North and Midlands significantly less optimistic about growing global sales in Q2 2025 compared to their London counterparts.
UKREIIF
On 21st May, Manchester Airport was proud to participate in the UK Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum (UKREiiF), a key event bringing together leaders from across infrastructure, investment, and development sectors.
MAG’s Alistair Andrews took part in a panel discussion focused on the future of aviation, where he highlighted Manchester Airport’s ongoing transformation programme, our commitment to developing future skills and job opportunities, and our ambitious plans to enhance local transport connectivity.
The session provided a valuable platform to share Manchester Airport’s strategic vision and reinforce its role as a critical driver of economic growth and opportunity for the region.
Visits to Manchester Airport
Manchester Airport hosted a successful series of visits to the airport in the latest quarter. These included Phil Brickell, MP for Bolton West; Tom Stannard, CEO, MCC; and various wider partners including GMCA and the Business Growth Hub. Each of these visits presented an opportunity to showcase our £1.3bn investment in Manchester Airport and discuss shared priorities and objectives.

Greater Manchester APPG
Manchester Airport, in partnership with other key regional organisations, co-sponsors the Greater Manchester All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), chaired by Jo Platt, MP for Leigh and Atherton. In the last quarter, representatives from the airport attended APPG sessions focused on clean energy and sustainability, as well as a dedicated sponsors' meeting. The latter discussed the future programme of the APPG and explored how best to maximise its impact in driving meaningful change across the region by leveraging the expertise of the sponsors.
Accessibility Group
In November 2024, the Government established the Accessibility Task and Finish Group to address key challenges and opportunities in improving accessibility across the aviation sector. All three MAG airports have been actively represented on this group since its inception. The group has convened monthly since November and has now completed its work, producing a final report containing 14 recommendations aimed at enhancing accessibility for all passengers across airports. This report is expected to be published publicly soon, sometime over the Summer. Manchester Airport and the wider MAG group fully support all the recommendations outlined in the report.
Liverpool-Manchester Rail
In the last quarter, a range of activities took place in relation to the Liverpool-Manchester Railway. Rail Board partners published the Connecting the North West to Drive National Prosperity prospectus, which was formally launched in Parliament. Manchester Airport’s Managing Director, Chris Woodroofe, joined a regional delegation in Westminster to participate in a roundtable discussion on the rail line and attend a reception hosted by Arup.
The reception was particularly well attended by parliamentarians and key stakeholders, providing a platform to reinforce the strategic importance of the rail line and the wider Northern Arc initiative.
Long-Haul Connectivity Report
Manchester Airport are working with Metro Dynamics to produce a report which updates the narrative, theory and evidence base on the impact of long-haul routes on the economy of Greater Manchester and the wider North, with a particular focus on our new direct route to Mumbai. The work follows successful China Dividend publications following the launch of the Beijing route and will assess the impact of the 2024 route to Shanghai, and the potential impact the Mumbai route will have on the region. The findings will highlight the opportunity for UK Government to support and integrate long-haul connectivity routes, from airports outside of London, into broader Government foreign and trade strategies.
Supporting constituency and local events
In April, the Public Affairs team were pleased to attend St Ann’s Road North Allotment Association with Tom Morrison MP to see firsthand the beneficiaries of Manchester Airport’s Community Trust Fund. The Allotment Association received £2,368 to purchase a container for tools and bee keeping equipment.
3. PLANNING MATTERS
Changes to National Planning Policy:
To support the new Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which was introduced to Parliament in March, the
Government has published a series of Planning Reform Working Papers looking at different aspects of planning reform. These working papers are designed to inform further policy development in collaboration with the wider sector rather than being formal consultations on specific proposals. Further to the publication of ‘Planning Reform Working Paper – Modernising Planning Committees’ in December 2024, a technical consultation is now being undertaken on the reform of Planning Committees, which is being legislated for through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. This consultation includes detail on a proposed national scheme of delegation (which would direct the majority of decisions on minor and technical applications to Planning Officers), the size and composition of Planning Committees and mandatory training for councillors on Planning Committees. The consultation is open for feedback until 23 July.
DEFRA is consulting on options for improving the implementation of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) across small, medium and brownfield sites, making sure new and improved natural habitats can be delivered faster without holding up new development. It is also consulting on how BNG will apply to Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) after the go-live date in May 2026. Both consultations are open for feedback until 24 July.
MAG will be reviewing each of these consultation documents and will make representations to promote and protect the interests of the Airport where appropriate.
Local Planning Policy:
The Airport continues to liaise with Manchester City Council on their drafting of the new Manchester Local Plan, the replacement for the current development plan that was adopted in 2012 and runs to 2027. A public consultation on the draft Manchester Local Plan is anticipated to start in late summer. Trafford Council consulted on their draft Local Plan between April and June. This consultation related only to the policies of the draft Trafford Local Plan, and the Airport made comprehensive representations to promote and protect the Airport’s interests, including in relation to the Davenport Green (Timperley Wedge) site allocation, sustainable transport and matters relating to aerodrome safeguarding. We have also engaged with Tameside Council on the options and preferences for their Local Plan (Homes, Spaces, Places) and Wigan Council on the initial draft version of their Local Plan, in both cases promoting the Airport’s economic benefits and transport connectivity and seeking to secure supportive aerodrome safeguarding policies.
Cheshire East Council consulted on the vision and priorities for their new Local Transport Plan between February and April. The Airport’s response recognised the key challenges and opportunities identified, welcomed the opportunity for early engagement to ensure that the impact and influence of the Airport is appropriately considered as the new Local Transport Plan takes shape (in terms of its economic contribution to the borough and opportunities for improved transport connectivity), and promoted collaborative working between the Airport and the Council.
Airport or near Airport developments:
• Sydney Avenue replacement – The new road is now open following the completion of construction at
the end of May.
• Airport Car Parking – Construction works continue on the Clough Bank B site (close to the Runway Visitor
Park) for additional Meet and Greet storage parking. The new car parking spaces will be delivered in
several phases throughout 2025. – Further to the acquisition last year of the off-airport parking operation
at Boundary Farm (land off Styal Road, immediately to the south of Staff East), the Airport are preparing
to submit a planning application for the demolition of the glasshouses and new surface airport car
parking. Traffic, ecology, tree and ground conditions surveys have been undertaken, and pre-application
engagement has commenced with Cheshire East Council. This will be followed by an application at the
end of the summer.
• Airport Hotels – Construction continues on the 7-storey, 154-bedroom Dakota brand hotel off Bailey
Lane, close to the former Etrop Grange hotel. This development is being led by a third party rather than
MAG. Planning permission was granted for the new 9-storey, 276-bedroom Premier Inn hotel (the largest
in the North West) on land between the Voyager office building and the Tribe hotel in February. All pre-
commencement conditions have been discharged and the drainage details required for the pre-above
ground works condition will be available for submission soon. Construction is anticipated to start on site
in early Autumn.

4. MANCHESTER AIRPORT TRANSFORMATION PROGRAMME (MAN-TP)
We are in the final stages of Phase Two of MAN-TP - our £1.3billion transformation programme to revolutionise the customer, colleague, and partner experience.
Landside: There have been several landside enhancements made over the last few months, including the opening of Sydney Avenue - a 200m link road. The design also includes a new junction with traffic lights onto Thorley Lane and Runger Lane to improve the flow of traffic to and from the airport.
We also introduced T2 dual forecourt operations and dynamic digital signage, where passengers are directed to drop off at either the lower forecourt as well as the existing upper forecourt, outside Terminal 2, providing an even smoother experience for drivers and passengers.

T2 Check-in East: We recently opened Zones B and C in T2 Check-in East. This has provided 38 hybrid new check-in desks, along with 40 self-service kiosks and eight integrated referral desks within Zone B, offering greater convenience and efficiency.
The MAN-TP team is now focused on delivering Zone A in October, which will provide an additional 20 hybrid check-in desks, a further 40 self-service kiosks and eight integrated referral desks, and additional baggage capacity.
T2 Security East: In May we achieved a major milestone on the programme and opened T2 Security East which mirrors the look and feel of T2 Security West. The area has ten new next-generation Security lanes and features floor to ceiling windows to maintain the bright and airy feel of T2 West.
T2 Departure Lounge (DL) East: The next major go live for MAN-TP is the opening of this area later this summer.
This will provide an improved experience for passengers with more seating, space and retail options from Joe and the Juice, Starbucks, UpperCrust, Rituals, Lego and WDF Express. The Departure Lounge East will also have an extended Special Assistance area to support passengers with reduced mobility.
Additionally, work on the T2 Arrivals Hall is ongoing with the strip out of the area progressing. This will eventually allow for new retail and food and beverage units to be added including Greggs, Costa Coffee and WH Smith.
Airfield: It’s been a busy and productive month for the airfield team, with several key trials and infrastructure changes delivered to support future growth. Taxiway Charlie has been upgraded to support airfield capacity over the summer and support future growth. We carried out an operational readiness trial on Taxiway November Alpha and introduced Taxiways November Alpha Blue/Orange and November Bravo Blue/Orange. These upgrades will boost capacity and provide greater flexibility for Air Traffic Control to efficiently manage the airfield flow, allowing aircraft to taxi side by side Pier 2: The FLANs (fixed links and nodes) are structurally complete and are in the final stages of their internal fit outs, with five airbridge installations complete. Internally, the pier is also in the finishing stages and the first Boarding Gate areas are being prepared for ORAT familiarisation. Pier 2 will significantly increase the number of aircraft that can operate from the brand-new terminal while offering passengers more space while they wait.
Pier 2 will offer 13 contact stands hosting a flexible arrangement for both wide and narrow-bodied aircraft.

5. OPERATIONAL DATA
On Time Performance (OTP)
Departure on-time performance depends on several factors including weather, airfield operations, and technical
issues. Monthly performance for the past financial year across all flight types are outlined below:

6. OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT – ROUTES AND SERVICES
FY26 Q1 Update:
• During the first quarter of FY26, 8.57m passengers travelled through Manchester Airport.
• The delivery of 8.57m passengers was 400k above the levels seen in 2024; +9% in April, 5% in May
and 1% in June.
• The year-on-year passenger growth has largely been driven by low-cost carriers, most notably
Ryanair and easyJet, who delivered 220k passengers above the previous year.
• In addition to the growth noted above, there has also been significant growth from Etihad (+23k),
Virgin Atlantic (+17k), Turkish Airlines (+14k), Saudia (+ 13k), KLM (+12k), Aer Lingus Long-haul
(+10k), and Hainan Airlines (+10k).
There have been numerous developments to Manchester Airport’s network in the Quarter, including:
• IndiGo confirming that they would start a new 3 x weekly Manchester – Mumbai service from July.
• Qatar Airways launching their 24 x weekly flying programme from MAN in June. This makes MAN
only the third European airport, alongside London Heathrow and Paris, to have more than 3 x daily
departures.
• easyJet has announced the launch of two brand new routes from Manchester to Ljubljana and
Strasbourg, starting this coming winter.
• Emirates announcing that they would introduce their Premium Economy product on some services
from May.
• Etihad operating their 10x weekly schedule at MAN throughout the quarter as the airline continues
to ramp up to double-daily operations later in Summer.
• Hainan Airlines operating a daily service between Manchester and Beijing in the quarter, which is
planned to continue throughout the summer season.
• Turkish Airlines starting their 28 x weekly operations from June, their largest ever schedule from
Manchester Airport.

7. CAR PARKING & SURFACE ACCESS
• Landside Operations: PAX and call volumes have increased since the winter and volumes have been high
post the Easter period, consistent with previous years. The 18th of May was the busiest ever day at
Manchester. M&G volumes have continued to exceed budgeted forecasts in the first quarter of FY26.
The landside control room assisted 271,408 customers via our car park/forecourt intercoms during Apr
25 -Jun 25, representing a 3% decrease on the same period in 2024. All the drop off forecourts are now
‘barrierless’, which will reduce the calls from these areas directly via an intercom. Landside NPS
continues to remain high when compared across the group, currently running at 44.1, against a target of
41.0.
• Customer Transport: Customer Transport delivered average airfield coaching SLA performance across
the quarter of 94% with performance up 8% vs. the same period last year as demand increased in line
with early peak season. Landside services continued to perform strongly, supporting a robust and above
target NPS performance throughout the quarter. Recruitment activity Apr-Jun continues to be the focus
to support the growth in both airfield coaching and landside bussing, with over 90 external and 30
internal offers made in the period.
• Car Parking: Car park occupancy averaged 99% throughout the quarter, across all self-park and Meet &
Greet products, with both self-park and Meet & Greet continuing to perform very well. NPS has been
sustained at record high levels, averaging 53 vs. target 41 and in some products continued to perform as
high as 70. Capacity balancing continued across the estate to mitigate the space loss of T1MSCP & Clough
Bank B. Cloud migration for ParkIT, as referenced in the previous quarter was completed for all products,
improving the reliability of the system and offering service enhancements from a reporting perspective.
Recruitment activity continued in each month to ensure we achieved the FTE target by end of June.
Operations manager role was also filled in June. In May the operation moved a record 4,630 cars on 31st
May 25 and already in June the average movements on a Saturday & Sunday are 4,500 movements.
• Manchester Airport Ground Transport Group: This group of internal stakeholders continues to meet to
discuss how we can work collaboratively to enhance ground transport/surface access to the airport site.
A pipeline of potential schemes which can be considered for support from the sustainable transport fund
is being developed. The group are currently exploring the feasibility of a Brompton Bike Hire Scheme for
passengers and staff.
• Rail Integration discussions: The Ground Transport Group recently established a new working group
with representatives from TfGM to work collaboratively towards the introduction of rail stations into the
Bee Network. Although the Airport is currently included in tranche 2 of the roll out (by December 2027),
it is important that we continue to engage with the rail integration team, to understand plans and next
steps for preparations.
• Platform Lengthening Scheme: Network Rail continuesto prepare a business case (for submission to the
Department of Transport), which seeks funding to lengthen the platforms at Manchester Airport Station.
If funding is approved, it could see platforms lengthened (by 2030), which will allow us to receive longer
passenger trains, hence increasing rail passenger capacity. Site visits have been facilitated to explore the
feasibility of works and we expect these to continue over coming months. In this period NWR, TfGM and
a number of external stakeholders have come together to understand the impact that the platform
scheme may have on passenger services to the airport during construction. We will continue to support
the team as they work on mitigation measures.
• New Access Point to Airport Orbital: A new entrance to the Airport Orbital Cycle Path and wider Bollin
Valley cycle network has recently been completed. Funded from the Airports Sustainable Transport
Fund, the scheme at Old Altringham Road will enable local walkers and cyclists to access the route more
easily.
8. MOBILITY SERVICES
CAA rating: We have seen extremely strong performance across all our key measures for Special Assistance
services. Our key performance measures for the Civil Aviation Authority to assist pre-booked arriving passengers within 20 minutes, and non-booked arriving passengers within 45 minutes, are at 99.33% and 99.93% respectively for the financial year to date, exceeding CAA targets, and is despite the fact that we have seen record months for PRM volumes in May and June 2025. May was our busiest ever month with 65,146 PRM’s assisted, despite this PRM satisfaction remains very strong at 4.3/5, which exceeds target of 4/5 for a ‘Very Good’ rating.
Passenger experience: Strong performance in all our key measures has been seen throughout the year to date, customer feedback is also performing strongly with satisfaction scores exceeding CAA target for a ‘Very Good’ rating and a year-on-year reduction in the number of complaints.
PRM Volumes (Prior 3 Months)

April 2025 May 2025 June 2025
49,416 65,146 63,214

ECAC Performance (Year to Date)

9. STAFFING

Unable to copy and paste

10. CUSTOMER INSIGHT & SECURITY ISSUES
Customer Feedback
The team received a total of 9,939 cases during the reporting period, which represents a significant increase from 6,319 in the previous January to March period, and an increase from 2,066 during the same period last year. As we transitioned into the easter and summer period, we served more passengers which resulted in more cases coming into the business. Additionally, transformational project work, such as barrierless, has contributed to the volume of cases received. The data insights have been shared with the local teams to drive improvements.

Security GSS

Apr 25 May 25 Jun 25
Complaints 1,581 1,701 2,927
Compliments 50 53 93
Suggestions & comments 167 159 334
Written enquiries 825 750 1,299
Complaints per 10k passengers 6.03 5.86 9.75
Average no of days to respond to customers
Average time to respond for the reporting period was 7
working days.
The performance for passengers transiting security in 15-minutes or less is detailed below:
Immigration
Please note – The information for June was not available in time for production of the report, this will be updated ahead of the MACC meeting

Social Media:
- Over the reporting period, our social media channels received 26,058 messages and welcomed 9,913 new followers across X, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok.
- Analysis shows that the predominant sentiment was neutral (51%). The top areas of enquiry were car park bookings, barrierless, transformation related queries, security regulations, and lost property.
- The top areas of issues related to barrierless, airport experience, T3 power outage (9th May), drop off and pick up, and assisted travel.
- The main campaigns during this period were:
o MAN-TP – Pier 2 construction,social value, airfield works update, digital gantry opening, Security
East, ORAT trial of Stand 108
o Comms – Barrierless, World Autism Day (highlighting assisted travel & the Sunflower Lanyard
scheme), Meet & Assist, Easter pax prep, twilight check-in, monthly passenger stats, Terminal 3
investment announcement, High Flyers Awards, Mental Health Awareness Week, CRG relaunch
o CSR – National Volunteering Month (spotlight with the Community team), Earth Day (bat barns),
Noise Action Plan, Airport Academy graduation, Sustainability Strategy launch
o Aviation – Aegean competition, various airline promotions, Qatar Airways increased service,
Pegasus Airlines competition
o Retail – National Burrito Day (Barburrito), Little Flyers Club Easter activities, Easter themed food,
Costa Coffee T2 refresh, World Cocktail Day (Apiary), Father’s Day gift guide (WDF)
o Other – Aether promotion, UK Trade Barometer, Liverpool-Manchester Railway

11. COMMUNITY MATTERS
A detailed Community Engagement report has been provided as an addendum to this report.
Social Sustainability
From April to June 2025, Manchester Airport supported 3,085 young people through or education programmes.
Of these, 1,083 visited our Aerozone education centre, with 864 coming from priority areas within a 15-mile radius of the airport.
Aerozone booking system
In April, we launched the booking system for next academic years Aerozone visits, prioritising Wythenshawe schools and schools within a 15-mile radius of the airport. The response has been extremely positive, with bookings for the upcoming academic year filling rapidly, with only a handful of dates left.
Kids at Work Day
In June we hosted two successful Kids at Work Day events, welcoming 56 children of airport colleagues. These events offered a unique, behind-the-scenes look of airport operations, including hands-on activities in Aerozone, an airside tour led by Airfield Operations, a visit to the fire station with interactive firefighting simulations and a visit to the Air Traffic Control Tower. These experiences help spark early interest in aviation careers and foster pride in the airport among employees and their families.
Work Experience Success Stories
Our long-standing commitment to work experience continues to deliver positive outcomes:
• Beth, a participant from the Wythenshawe Barnardo’s employability programme, completed a
placement with our education and flight evaluation teams and has since secured a role as a MAG Aviation
Security Officer.
• Lewis and Imogen, aviation students from The Manchester College, completed extended placements
and have progressed into roles at Manchester Airport. Lewis is now a Customer Experience Ambassador
and Imogen is flying in the skies as Cabin Crew for Jet2.com.
• In June, two students from St Paul’s High School completed a comprehensive placement across
departments including Aerozone, engineering, retail, and executive lounges. They also supported STEM
outreach in local schools, strengthening our community links. Both students had a memorable week and
have left us excited for their future careers at Manchester Airport.
These stories highlight the transformative impact of real-world experience and ourrole in nurturing future talent.
Careers Fairs
Throughout the past 3 months, MAG representatives attended several careers fairs at Bridge House, The
Manchester College, Marple Hall School, and The Kingsway School. These events provided vital opportunities to engage directly with young people to promote the wide range of careers available at Manchester Airport and inspire the next generation to consider careers in aviation and related industries.
Women in Engineering Day
To mark National Women in Engineering Day, we delivered an interactive engineering challenge at Newall Green Primary School as part of their whole-school Engineering Day. Pupils were tasked with using everyday materials to build strong and stable structures, applying their maths, teamwork, and problem-solving skills in a fun and engaging way. This initiative is part of our ongoing commitment to promote STEM learning and encourage girls to explore engineering pathways from an early age. We were joined by five female engineers from Manchester Airport, who shared their personal journeys into engineering and supported the pupils during the challenge.
Their presence helped bring real-world context to the activities and showed the children, especially the girls, that engineering is a career for everyone.
Royal Cheshire Show
In June our Education and Community Engagement teams represented Manchester Airport at the Royal Cheshire Show. The education team took along our interactive touchscreen games, which host three games, one that teaches young people about how Sustainable Aviation Fuel is made, another which calculates flight paths and another which takes them on a departure dilemma. We also took along our custom snakes and ladders game mat, which communicates our net zero ambitions in a fun and interactive way. Over 800 people visited us across the two days, with 50% of these being young people.
Pure Innovations Graduation
On the 26th June, nine young people from Greater Manchester with special educational needs and disabilities have become the latest to secure paid roles through a partnership between Manchester Airport and local disability charity Pure Innovations.
The Supported Internships programme, launched in 2015, provides those enrolled with a close level of
supervision and assistance over the course of a 10-month internship with MAG or one of our partners operating on the airport site. The internships are a structured, work-based study programme for 16- to 24-year-olds with special educational needs and disabilities, aiming to provide the opportunity for young people to achieve sustained, paid employment by equipping them with the skills they need for work, through learning in the workplace.
Interns gain first-hand workplace experience between 9am and 1pm from Monday to Thursday with MAG or an airport partner participating in the programme, which include Bidvest Noonan, Crowne Plaza, GXO, Greggs and ABM.
They then spend eight additional hours per week in classroom sessions equipping them with the skills they need for a successful career at the airport. They have also thrown their support behind charitable projects – including supporting foodbank The Tree of Life with sorting donations.
Over the past decade, the programme has supported more than 60 interns into paid employment at the end of the programme – with 82 per cent of Pure Innovations graduates still in their roles 12 months later.
Among the latest graduates from the programme, was 20-year-old Jawariah Suleman from Stockport. She
completed a placement at Greggs in Terminal 1 of Manchester Airport and has now secured a paid role with the bakery chain, after impressing managers with her attitude and commitment to great customer service.
Jawariah said: “It has been absolutely amazing. I have learned all about customer service, how to handle money, and have built up my skills and my confidence. The biggest lesson for me was to use my own initiative to solve problems. I’m really pleased to now have a paid job.”
Liam O’Brien – Jawariah’s manager at Greggs – added: “Jawariah never stops smiling, she works hard and is always happy to take on new responsibilities. She has fit into the team well, brings a lot of enthusiasm and we’re delighted to have been able to offer her paid employment following her supported internship.”
Launch of the Manchester Airport Skills Hub
We are proud to announce the launch of the Manchester Airport Skills Hub, in partnership with Trafford &
Stockport College Group. This initiative is designed to support up to 4,000 young people and adults over the next five years. The programme will:
• Engage over 1,200 local young people aged 14–19 through pre-employment training, apprenticeships,
and leadership development.
• Provide meaningful work-related learning and placements across the airport campus.
• Support over 2,700 individuals from neighbouring communities into employment, building on the
success of the Airport Academy, which has already helped nearly 2,000 people into paid work since 2012.

• Upskill the current workforce
• Establish a virtual college to support 300 learners annually, with a focus on inclusive growth and
employer-led training
The Skills Hub is governed by a newly formed Advisory Board, which met for the first time on the 13th June. The board includes representatives from MAG, Trafford & Stockport College Group, Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Manchester City Council, and key airport business partners.
Manchester Airport Academy Between April and June, the Manchester Airport Academy trained 85 jobseekers, with 29 securing paid employment afterwards.
Courses continue to run on a fortnightly basis and regularly attend job centres and job fairs in the local area to promote the opportunity to jobseekers. Between April and June, we attended 35 outreach and engagement activities, supporting 985 people.
Our partnerships with employers such as MAG, Dnata, ABM, and Skytanking remain strong. These partners
enhance our programmes through guest speaking and mock interviews, providing participants with valuable insights in live vacancies and industry connections.
In May we relaunched the Airport Academy course. The new programme offers an immersive two-week
introduction to working in the aviation industry. It is designed for those who are long-term unemployed, do not have qualifications or have faced challenges getting into stable full-time work.
At the conclusion of the programme, candidates take part in workshops teaching them CV writing and interview skills, before conducting a mock interview with representatives from MAG and other employers based on site. After graduating, we support candidates with applying for roles on the airport site.
Previous Airport Academy courses have been tailored to roles where the airport and its partners were looking to recruit, but this is the first course offering a more general grounding to candidates, opening the door to lots of different roles. We have worked closely with third-party employers based at Manchester Airport to ensure our training is aligned with real recruitment needs.
Amongst the first graduates, was Venus Yarahmady from Stockport. Prior to joining the Airport Academy
programme, she had spent 10 years working as a community interpreter on a self-employed basis but is now looking for a stable full-time job.
Venus said: “The airport seems like an interesting environment to work in, and I’ve learned a lot of new skills already over the course of the 10-day programme, both in terms of customer service and preparing for interview when applying for roles. It has really helped me increase my confidence.”
Armed Forces Veterans at Employment & Training Event
On the 18th June, Manchester Airport Academy was proud to attend a special event dedicated to supporting armed forces veterans seeking new training and employment opportunities.
The event brought together a range of organisations committed to helping veterans transition into civilian
careers. Our team was there to promote the Airport Academy’s pre-employability training course.
It was a fantastic opportunity to connect with veterans, share information about the pathways available through the Academy, and highlight the supportive environment we offer to help individuals succeed.

12. FUTURE AIRSPACE
Wider Airspace Modernisation update

In the Scottish Terminal Manoeuvring Area (TMA) Glasgow Airport has passed through the Stage 3 gateway (joining NATS En Route -NERL) after submitting some minor clarifications to the CAA. Edinburgh Airport postponed their Stage 3 resubmission to July 2025 (should have been February) following their gateway failure in October 2024. Glasgow Airport and NERL will need to pause and wait for Edinburgh to catch them up.
London Gatwick Airport, having postponed their Stage 3 submission for London Airport South (LAS) for a second time pending further options analysis and environmental assessment work, have agreed a new Stage 3 gateway of 30th January 2026. Aberdeen Airport has now progressed to Stage 5 ‘Decide’ with their gateway due 27th June 2025.
Following consultation in late 2024, the DfT and CAA published a consultation response document in June
confirming plans to proceed with the creation of a single entity for modernising the design of UK airspace. The UK Airspace Design Service (UKADS) is expected to be operational by the end of 2025 and will be delivered by NATS En-Route (NERL), through a change to its air traffic licence. In the short term, UKADS will be responsible for delivering the London cluster ACPs, but the scope will likely evolve in the long term to include responsibility for all UK ACPs.
We expect the DfT and CAA to consult shortly on proposed changes to the NATS En Route (NERL) air traffic services licence. Further consultation is expected by September on a package of regulatory changes to facilitate the creation of UKADS.
Funding for the UKADS will be provided by a new Airspace Design Charge. In addition to meeting NERL’s costs to provide the airspace design service through UKADS, the charge will also fund a new UK Airspace Design Support Fund. This fund will be available to cover the relevant costs of the sponsors of eligible ACPs which are outside of the scope of UKADS such as those in other TMAs like Manchester Airport. The progress on UKADS underlines how vital airspace modernisation is to achieving long term infrastructure change.
Further details can be found in CAP3106 which outlines the outcome of the consultation and CAP3106a, the regulatory impact assessment. There are additional supporting documents also available on the UKADS webpages on the CAA website.
The Manchester Airport Future Airspace project (ACP-2019-23)
As members will recall, in the Manchester Terminal Manoeuvring Area (TMA) there are Airspace Change
Processes underway (between ground and 7,000ft) at Manchester, East Midlands, Liverpool John Lennon, and Leeds Bradford Airports. NATS En Route Ltd (NERL) are undertaking works above 7,000ft.
As outlined at previous meetings, Stage 3 requires sponsors to progress through the gateway at the same time as the other sponsors in the same ‘TMA cluster’. Although Manchester, Liverpool John Lennon and East Midlands have completed Stage 2, Leeds Bradford is yet to submit a third attempt to pass the Stage 2 Gateway.
A revised programme for the cluster sponsors, arranged by the Airspace Change Organising Group (ACOG), has still to be agreed. As a result, no new Stage 3 Gateway has been established.
Projects to remove reliance on the MCT DVOR
As previously reported, the existing departure and arrival procedures are dependent upon national assets
(provided by NATS En Route Ltd) scheduled to be removed from service on 1st January 2026. The Manchester Airport Future Airspace project (ACP-2019-23) will provide the long-term solution, entirely replacing dependency on ground based navigational aids with Satellite navigation. Two projects will ‘bridge’ the gap between removal of the ground based navigational aids and the delivery ACP-2019-23:
• ACP-2024-002 Contingency RNP approaches for Runway 23R, Runway 05L & Runway 05R.
• ACP-2024-007 RNAV Substitution of Eligible Conventional Procedures.

As reported last quarter, although we made our final submissions (to the CAA) for both ACP-2024-002 and ACP-2024-007 in 2024, the CAA were unable to assess according to the timeline that they had agreed. CAA IFP

(Instrument Flight Procedure) assessment commenced in April 2025 and at the time of writing this report we are awaiting any feedback or queries. Subject to CAA agreement of our Flight Validation Plan; simulator assessment (of the RNP approaches) is due to take place in June/July. With successful Flight Validation and CAA approval, implementation, of the RNP approaches and RNAV Substitution, will be in November 2025. At that point reliance upon the MCT/TNT DVORs and MCT DME, that NERL will decommission, will be removed.
13. MANCHESTER AIRPORT IN THE NEWS
In May we announced a major investment in Terminal 3 to modernise and expand the footprint of the terminal following the closure of Terminal 1, with 40% more seating capacity in the departure lounge, new shops and food and drink outlets, and a new 500 seat bar area with airfield views. The MEN took the story as an exclusive and it received a positive response.
May also saw us announce the destination for IndiGo's new service to India – flights will operate to Mumbai, making Manchester the first UK airport outside of London to fly directly to the city. We ran an initial announcement press release – and then a follow-up which included supporting comments from a range of regional stakeholders.
We also marked almost 10,000 Manchester United fans flying to Bilbao for the Europa League final, which
attracted substantial regional and national media interest, as well as an initiative that will see customer-facing airport colleagues given the opportunity to learn British Sign Language. June also saw us announce the airport’s new Skills Hub, a multi-faceted partnership with Trafford & Stockport College Group, building on the success of the long-running Airport Academy that we have worked together on.

 

[Scottie Dog]

The next MACC meeting is scheduled for next Friday, 10th October. Meetings usually start at 10am at the Doubletree by Hilton, Manchester Airport.
The meetings are open to the public, but only as observers - questions are not permitted. If you are interested in attending, can I please ask you to send me a PM so that I can update you when I receive further information.
Scottie Dog

 

[Scottie Dog]

I was fortunate to be able to attend, as an observer, the Manchester Airport Consultative Committee meeting on Friday 10th October. I will concentrate on the address given by Chris Woodroofe, who had only arrived back from Delhi that morning – via Heathrow.

New routes were obviously highlighted and, in particular, those of IndiGo to Delhi and Mumbai, Norse to Bangkok and PIA who are returning to serve Islamabad. I understand that Chris will be having a meeting with Thai in November.

Switching to Terminal 2, the first item mentioned was the new domestic arrivals facility, which Chris himself had used. He did explain that the facility currently in use is temporary and will be upgraded as soon as possible. Terminal 2 should fully open by the end of October.

Information was also provided in connection the Airspace redevelopment and the delays that have occurred with Leeds. Apparently Leeds are going to change the company acting on their behalf for the Airspace Changes. Hopefully this will speed up the process.

The following is taken from the official report from the Managing Director. Due to space limitations I have had to exclude the sections relating to Operational Data, Car Parking & Surface Access, Mobility Srrvices, Staffing, Customer Insight & Security Issues, Community Matters and, finally, Manchester Airport in the News.

Report of the Managing Director

INTRODUCTION

The third quarter of 2025 saw Manchester Airport continue to grow, delivering a strong performance in all the key areas. During the period from July to September 2025, Manchester Airport has served a total of over 9.9 million passengers, reflecting a 3% increase compared to the same period in 2024. The individual monthly breakdown is as follows, July 3,298,846, August 3,484,928, and September 3,101,913. This means that Manchester Airport’s 12 month rolling total is over 31.8 million passengers (31,802,721).

During Q3, Manchester Airport sustained strong performance in both security and operational metrics. Security efficiency remained high, with 95% of passengers processed through security in 10 minutes or less, meeting our current target. Inbound baggage handling also performed well.

A key highlight of Q3 was the opening of our new retail section in Terminal 2, marking the latest milestone in the 10-year, £1.3bn transformation of Terminal 2, more than doubling the terminal’s size and creating a world-class passenger experience. An extension to the terminal opened in 2021, and the airport is now in the final stages of overhauling the original Terminal 2 building to bring it up to the same standard as the extension, mirroring the modern look and feel. Renowned high street brands including LEGO®, Rituals and Pandora are among the new retailers that opened in Terminal 2 in Q3.

To conclude, the third quarter of 2025 has been a strong period for Manchester Airport, reinforcing our upward trajectory. With this momentum and the final stages of MAN-TP, we have successfully completed our busiest summer ever in our airport.

GOVERNMENT ENGAGEMENT AND POLICY

Throughout Q3, Manchester Airport and its Public Affairs team have participated in several events and engagements to represent its interests. A continuation of the successful stakeholder engagement with key influencers that took place in the previous quarter.

Visits to Manchester Airport

Manchester Airport hosted a successful series of visits to the airport in Q2 during the parliamentary recess and beyond. Lisa Smart (MP for Hazel Grove), Ken Skates (MS for Clwyd South, and Transport Secretary for Wales), Adam Jogee (MP for Newcastle-under-Lyme), Lucy Powell (MP for Manchester Central, and Deputy Labour Party Leader candidate), and Michael Wheeler (MP for Worsley and Eccles). Each of these visits presented an opportunity to showcase our £1.3bn investment in Manchester Airport and discuss shared priorities and objectives.

Women in Public Affairs Reception

Manchester Airport sponsored a Women in Public Affairs (WiPA) reception at Aviva Studios in Manchester. This event was the first held in the north by WiPA in the north. We invited Sarah Mulholland, Deputy Chief Executive of The Northern Powerhouse Partnership to speak at the event who spoke on the importance of regional voices in public affairs. Chris Woodroofe also spoke at this event, pointing out the need to challenge biases and stereotypes across the sector. Whilst offering women a chance to connect with their peers, this event also helped to position Manchester Airport as a responsible employer.

Government Reshuffle

In September, the Labour Government carried out a major reshuffle following Angela Rayner’s departure as deputy Prime Minister, Housing Secretary and Deputy Party Leader. The key change impacting Manchester Airport is the appointment of Keir Mather (MP for Selby) as the new Minister for Aviation, Maritime and Decarbonisation, taking over from Mike Kane, our constituency MP, who previously held that role.

Rayner’s departure also tiggered a contest to elect a new deputy leader of the Labour Party; the two candidates who secured enough support from fellow Labour MPs were Bridget Phillipson (current Education Secretary and MP for Houghton and Sunderland South), and Lucy Powell (MP for Manchester Central, and former Leader of the House of Commons). Voting by party members will decide the winner, with the result expected on October 25th.

Labour Party Conference

The Public Affairs team attended the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool over from Sunday 28 September –Tuesday 30 September. The team engaged with key stakeholders, including Elsie Blundell (MP for Heywood and Middleton North), Navendru Mishra (MP for Stockport), Afzal Khan (MP for Manchester Rusholme) and Sarah Russell (MP for Congleton). The team attended multiple events hosted by key partners, including Northern Powerhouse Partnership (NPP) Reception, NPP Annual Dinner, NPP Annual Transport Reception and the Northwest Business Leadership Team Networking Event.

Chris Woodroofe, Managing Director, was a key speaker at the Regional Growth Reception with the Growing Together Alliance on behalf of the Manchester Airport Group. Manchester City Council Leader Bev Craig, Daniel Zeichner (MP for Cambridge) and Josh Simons (MP for Makerfield) also spoke. Each speaker emphasised the economic impact and significance of the regions to achieving growth, a key government priority.

Japan Week

Manchester Airport was a sponsor of this year’s Japan Week. The festival, now in its 50th year, was held in Manchester in September. Chris Woodroofe spoke at the VIP reception on the importance of long-haul connectivity for growth i our region. Our aviation team hosted representatives from Japan Airlines at Manchester Airport during Japan Week to talk discuss possible future direct flights between MAN and Tokyo (HND). The Public Affairs team supported Aether with the arrival and departure of the Osaka delegation, including the Mayor of Osaka, through Manchester Airport.

External Engagement

Chris Woodroofe was a key speaker the Altrincham and Sale Chamber of Commerce Members Lunch alongside Mike Kane (MP for Wythenshawe and Sale). Rhys Whalley, Corporate Affairs Director, presented at the Stockport Economic Alliance on 24 September 2025. These presented opportunities to provide an update on MAN-TP, passenger numbers and route updates as well as the latest results from the Q2 Trade Barometer, sustainability targets outlined in the latest Sustainability Strategy 2025, and upcoming opportunities such as Meet the Buyers.

Liverpool-Manchester Rail / NPR

In the last quarter, the Rail Board partners have been awaiting further decision on funding for Liverpool-Manchester Rail and Northern Powerhouse Rail. Partners, including Manchester Airport, are working in collaboration to continually engage with government around timing of an announcement.

Long-Haul Connectivity Report

Manchester Airport are continuing to work with Metro Dynamics to produce a report which updates the narrative, theory and evidence base on the impact of long-haul routes on the economy of Greater Manchester and the wider North, with a particular focus on our new direct route to Mumbai. The work follows successful China Dividend publications following the launch of the Beijing route and will assess the impact of the 2024 route to Shanghai, and the potential impact the Mumbai route will have on the region. The findings will highlight the opportunity for UK Government to support and integrate long-haul connectivity routes, from airports outside of

London, into broader Government foreign and trade strategies.

PLANNING MATTERS

Changes to National Planning Policy:

In May 2025, DEFRA launched two parallel consultations relating to the implementation of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG). One proposed wide-ranging modifications to how BNG is applied to minor, medium and brownfield

development and the other focused on Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs). Although these consultations reflected very different scales of development, they shared a common intention of making BNG more proportionate, effective and reducing process burdens. MAG made representations to promote and protect the interests of the Airport, drawing attention to some specific issues regarding the way BNG regulations are applied.

Local Planning Policy:

Manchester City Council published the draft Manchester Local Plan for public consultation on 22 September, and it will run until 17 November. The Plan contains policies for the Manchester Airport Strategic Site, Aviation Noise, Manchester Airport Public Safety Zones and Aerodrome Safeguarding, all of which have been developed in collaboration with MAG. Policy relating to the MIX Manchester (formerly known as Airport City) site to the north of the Airport is also included.

Trafford Council is also holding a public consultation on the draft Trafford Local Plan Site Allocations and Designations from 22 September until 3 November. This part of their Local Plan covers sites for new residential and employment development and follows on from a previous, more general consultation that was held earlier this year. Stockport Council have announced that they will consult on a new draft Local Plan between November and December 2025.

Cheshire East Council is in the process of developing a new Active Travel Strategy and we shared our views during the consultation that ran in the Summer. We continue to collaborate with the Council on active travel route identification and development.

Airport or near Airport developments:

• Airport Car Parking – Works continue at the Clough Bank B site (close to the Runway Visitor Park) for additional Meet and Greet storage parking. The first phase of spaces is now expected to be delivered early 2026. Following acquisition last year of the former Care Park car park at Boundary Farm (land off Styal Road, immediately to the south of Staff East), we are preparing to submit a planning application for the demolition of the glasshouses and creation of a replacement surface car park that will be operated in our JetParks self-park format. Traffic, ecology, tree and ground conditions surveys have been completed, and a pre-application meeting has been held with Cheshire East Council. The planning application is due to be submitted in October.

• Airport Hotels – Construction continues at the 7-storey, 154-bedroom Dakota brand hotel on land off Enterprise Way and Bailey Lane, close to the former Etrop Grange hotel. This development is being led by a third party rather than MAG. Construction is due to start on the 9-storey, 276-bedroom Premier Inn hotel on land between the Voyager office building and the Tribe Hotel towards the end of the year.

MANCHESTER AIRPORT TRANSFORMATION PROGRAMME (MAN-TP)

We are in the final stages of Phase Two of MAN-TP - our £1.3billion transformation programme to revolutionise the customer, colleague, and partner experience.

Landside: Sydney Avenue, our new 200m link road was completed. The design also includes a new junction with traffic lights onto Thorley Lane and Runger Lane to improve the flow of traffic to and from the airport. Other landside improvements introduced this summer include new car park designators (the P numbers) at T2 car parks, with the rest of the estate to follow as we move the remaining carriers (except Ryanair) from T1/3 to T2.

This is as well as new T2 dual forecourt operations with dynamic digital signage on lower and upper levels of the forecourt, providing an even smoother experience for drivers and passengers.

T2 Check-in East: Works are progressing well to deliver Zone A which is the final area of our new T2 Check-in East to be completed. This is due to open in October and will provide an additional 20 hybrid check-in desks, a further 40 self-service kiosks, eight integrated referral desks, and additional baggage capacity.

T2 Departure Lounge East: This summer saw the opening of T2 Departures East, featuring seven new retailers Joe and the Juice, Starbucks, UpperCrust, Rituals, Lego and WDF Express, more seating, space, toilets and airfield views. Very soon we’ll be opening a brand new and improved, more centrally located Special Assistance area to support passengers with reduced mobility.

T2 Arrivals: Work on the T2 Arrivals Hall is ongoing, once ready we will be opening a new Costa (end October), followed by Greggs and WHSmith later this year, providing passengers and colleagues even more choice in our landside areas.

Pier 2: The pier body and FLaNs (fixed links and nodes) are approaching practical completion, with all airbridges installed and into commissioning. Internally, the Pier fit out is almost complete, with mechanical, electrical and plumbing underway. Operational readiness, activation and transition (ORAT) activity has commenced in areas such as boarding gates, airbridges and stands ahead of the operational go live. Pier 2 will significantly increase the number of aircraft that can operate from the brand-new terminal while offering passengers more space while they wait. Pier 2 will offer 13 contact stands hosting a flexible arrangement for both wide and narrow-bodied aircraft.

Airfield: The airfield will deliver nearly 2km of new dual taxiway (allowing for 13 new stands to serve Pier 2).

These upgrades will boost capacity and provide greater flexibility for Air Traffic Control to efficiently manage the airfield flow, allowing aircraft to taxi side by side. Line marking has commenced for the dual taxiways, and Into-Plane Fueller works remain on track for completion by the end of October.

T2 Chandeliers

Manchester Airport has partnered with the Manchester School of Architecture and a local artist Lazerian, to reimagine our iconic chandeliers from Terminal 1. Following a public vote where we asked for feedback on some design concepts, work is underway to build and install our reimagined chandeliers. They will be located in the new T2 Security East area.



OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT – ROUTES AND SERVICES

FY26 Q2 Update

• During Q2 FY26 (July 2025 – September 2025), 9.9m passengers travelled through Manchester Airport which was 3% above the same period in 2024, with all months achieving growth.

• August 2025 was the busiest month in the history of Manchester Airport with 3.5m passengers travelling through Manchester.

• Manchester Airport’s busiest ever day was also recorded in August 118,242 passengers travelling on the 17th of August, eclipsing the previous record from 26th August 2024.

• The year-on-year passenger growth has largely been driven by low-cost carriers, most notably Ryanair and easyJet, who delivered +90k and +65k passengers above previous year respectively.

• In addition to the above growth, there have also been significant growth from Etihad (+52k), Qatar Airways (+23k) and Jueyao Airlines (+22k).

There have been numerous developments to Manchester Airport’s network in the

Quarter, including:



• IndiGo launching a new 3 x weekly service to Mumbai in July which, due to strong performance in their initial months of operation, will increase to 4 x weekly from September.

• Norse announced they would launch Manchester – Bangkok flights in November, the first time that Manchester has had a direct link to the city.

• Qatar Airways operating their 24 x weekly program from Manchester, the carrier’s largest and making Manchester only the 3rd station in Europe to have more than 21 x weekly flights.

• Ethiopian Airlines starting their daily service to Addis Ababa in July.

• Etihad returning to their pre-pandemic schedule of 14 x weekly flights from August

• Jet2 announcing new services to Olympus Riveira, Meganisi and Palermo from 2026.



CAR PARKING & SURFACE ACCESS

• Landside Operations: The landside control room assisted 172,345 customers via our car park intercoms during July 25 -Sept 25, representing a 54% decrease on the same period in 2024. This decrease is a result of all forecourts becoming a barrierless product. Over the same time frame, 7.1 million vehicles have used forecourts across Manchester with 79% exiting in under 5 minutes. These interventions have been focused on car park safety and traffic flows which will see further improvement as flows shift with the implementation of a two-terminal operation and the removal of the current drop off area at T1.

• Customer Transport: Landside Services performed strongly supported with continued above target NPS performance throughout the quarter. Recruitment concluded in August with a circa 190 drivers onboarded.

• Car Parking: Car park occupancy averaged 99% throughout the quarter, across all self-park and Meet & Greet products, with both self-park and Meet & Greet continuing to perform very well. NPS scores dropped in May / June due to the changes in the car park names at T2. Wayfinding was the main impacting reason and Interventions were introduced in July and from Aug we did see NPS score move back to pre-name change levels. Capacity balancing continued across the estate to mitigate the space loss of T1MSCP & Clough Bank B. Cloud migration for Park IT, as referenced in the previous quarter, was completed for all products, improving the reliability of the system and offering service enhancements from a reporting perspective. Recruitment activity paused as we achieved FTE in June, and this continued

through the summer, all manager roles were also filled with recruitment helping us achieve a stable operation through the summer. In September, the operation moved a record 4,971 cars, through the summer the average movements on a Saturday & Sunday are 4,600 movements. Overall, a very stable operation through the summer with record movements.

• Manchester Airport Ground Transport Group: This group of internal stakeholders continues to meet to discuss how we can work collaboratively to enhance ground transport/surface access to the airport site.

A pipeline of potential schemes which can be considered for support from the sustainable transport fund is being developed. The group are currently exploring the feasibility of a Brompton Bike Hire Scheme for passengers and staff, alongside a package of improvements for the Ground Transport Interchange. The group is working closely with TransPennine Trains and TfGM to develop outline proposals for consideration.

• Manchester Airport Transport Forum will meet on 25th November 2025. The role of the Airport

Transport Forum is to seek to improve accessibility and increase public transport use to and from airports for staff and passengers, aiming to reduce the environmental impact of travel. This year the theme will be ‘connectivity’ – presentations will centre around any work this year relating to the planning or delivery of enhanced connectivity/improved connections to the airport across all modes of transport.

• Platform Lengthening Scheme: Network Rail (NWR) continuesto prepare a business case (for submission to the Department of Transport), which seeks funding to lengthen the platforms at Manchester Airport Station. If funding is approved, it could see platforms lengthened (by 2030), which will allow us to receive longer passenger trains, hence increasing rail passenger capacity. In this period, we have continued to support the case development, facilitating site visits to the airport, considering potential sites for NWR to utilise during the construction period.

• Ardwick Blockade: In February 2026, for a two-week period, Manchester Airport will not receive any rail services via the Manchester Piccadilly Line, as it will be closed for essential works. We have been working closely with TfGM, NWR and Rail Operators to plan, and understand how at the airport, we can facilitate the movement of a number of rail replacement buses, through an already busy GTI. There will be a number of extra buses expected, requiring careful management.

• Letter of Support: We have been supporting London Northwestern Railway with a business case which seeks to introduce a new rail service between Manchester Airport and Birmingham, via Crewe. In this period, we have prepared a letter of support for this service, which we expect will enhance rail service connectivity for both staff and passengers wishing to access the airport. We expect to hear back as to whether the service has been successful in securing rail industry approval in late autumn.

• University Services: Over the past month we have welcomed a high volume of pax through the GTI, including one of the largest University operations here at Manchester Airport. International students have been travelling to universities across the north of England and Wales, with the majority connecting via coach and rail services, onward to Bangor, Cumbria, Huddersfield, Lancaster, the University of Central Lancashire, Leeds, Liverpool, Preston, Sheffield, York, and of course Manchester Universities. The operation would have not been possible without the support and dedicated efforts of MAN Ops and Planning, alongside our stakeholders at TransPennine Express and Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM). This is a key aspect of MAG playing a key role in connecting the north and helping students reach their destinations with ease.

FUTURE AIRSPACE

Wider Airspace Modernisation update

In the Scottish Terminal Manoeuvring Area (TMA) all three airspace change sponsors (Glasgow, Edinburgh and NATS EnRoute -NERL) have now passed through the Stage 3 gateway. We expect Glasgow, Edinburgh and NERL to commence their Stage 3 full scale public consultation later this month.

On 4th September the DfT and CAA commenced consultation on proposed modifications to NATS EnRoute (NERL) licence terms that would allow them to deliver the UK Airspace Design Service (UKADS). Three questions have been posed, and responses needed to be submitted before the consultation closed at 23:59 hrs on 1st October 2025.

The CAA commenced consultation on proposed changes to the CAP1616 airspace change process on 25th September. Changes are necessary at this time to support airspace changes sponsored by the UK Airspace Design Service (UKADS). Alongside UKADS specific proposals, the CAA has taken the opportunity to look more broadly at the process to identify where it could potentially be streamlined. There are a number of proposed changes which would apply to all ACPs. Key proposals include:

• Reducing the number of gateways, where the CAA must review and approve sponsors’ work before they can Continue

• Simplifying the process from seven stages to four, making it more efficient and proportionate for all ACPs.

The consultation closes on 18th December and full details can be found in CAP3157 and the CAA’s Citizen Space platform: Consultation on the airspace change process - Civil Aviation Authority - Citizen Space.

We are anticipating further DfT and CAA consultation on regulatory changes to facilitate the creation of UKADS through the autumn months. These are likely to include necessary changes to:

• Airspace Change Masterplan

• Air Navigation Guidance

• Air Navigation Directions

MAG is expecting to respond to the consultations on behalf of all three airports.

The Manchester Airport Future Airspace project (ACP-2019-23)

As members will recall, in the Manchester Terminal Manoeuvring Area (TMA) there are Airspace Change Processes underway (between ground and 7,000ft) at Manchester (MAN), East Midlands (EMA), Liverpool John Lennon (LPL), and Leeds Bradford Airports(LBA). NATS En Route Ltd (NERL) are undertaking works above 7,000ft.

As previously outlined to members, Stage 3 requires sponsors to progress through the gateway and consult at the same time as the other sponsors in the ‘TMA cluster’. MAN, LPL, EMA and NERL all completed Stage 2 (passed through the Stage 2 Gateway) in 2023. Having missed their August 2025 submission date LBA subsequently postponed their Stage 2 Gateway (for the ninth time) and plan to submit a third attempt to pass in March 2026

(Gateway April 2026).

This regrettable delay in the progress of LBA of course affects the progression of MAN, LPL, EMA and NERL. Until LBA has passed the Stage 2 it cannot progress through Stage 3. A Stage 3 Gateway will need to be timed to allow LBA to progress through the Stage 2 Gateway and then commence/complete Stage 3 activities before it. A revised programme for the cluster sponsors, arranged by the Airspace Change Organising Group (ACOG), has still to be agreed. As a result, no new Stage 3 Gateway has been established.

Projects to remove reliance on the MCT DVOR

As previously reported, the existing departure and arrival procedures are dependent upon national assets (provided by NATS En Route Ltd) scheduled to be removed from service in 2026. The Manchester Airport Future Airspace project (ACP-2019-23) will provide the long-term solution, entirely replacing dependency on ground based navigational aids with Satellite navigation. Two projects will ‘bridge’ the gap between removal of the ground based navigational aids and the delivery ACP-2019-23:

• ACP-2024-002 Contingency RNP approaches for Runway 23R, Runway 05L & Runway 05R.

• ACP-2024-007 RNAV Substitution of Eligible Conventional Procedures.

As previously reported, although we made our final submissions (to the CAA) for both ACP-2024-002 and ACP-2024-007 in 2024, the CAA were unable to assess according to the timeline that they had agreed. CAA IFP (Instrument Flight Procedure) assessment did not commence until in April 2025 and queries were not received until June. We have been working hard to address the queries raised and we have had to agree a new timeline with the CAA for implementation.

Our Flight Validation Plan (simulator assessment of the RNP approaches) was completed in August, thanks to Boeing 737-8 simulations with TUI Airways and Airbus A320-251 simulations with easyJet in June/August. Subject to the approval of the responses and documentation submitted, by the CAA, in March 2026 we plan to introduce the Contingency RNP approaches and implement RNAV Substitution.

 

[Aviador]

Great work @Scottie Dog

 

[robsh34]

Thanks for the report.

I am surprised that a rail company such as West Midland Trains or London North Western haven't had a service to the Airport before.

Although the areas north of the airport and North Wales are reasonably well served services to the south of the region are poorly served with one stopping service an hour to Crewe.

Having a service to the Airport covering the North Midlands - let's say anywhere north of Wolverhampton- would be of great benefit to passengers . Now that we have more flights going to the Indian sub continent such a rail service would help passengers get to the airport without the need to use a car.

 

[Scottie Dog]

Please find below an extract from Chris Woodroofe's report to the Airport Consultative Committee. This part relates to the current and future development of the airport.

Manchester Airport Consultative Committee (MACC)
Managing Directors Report
Reporting period October – December 2025
MACC Meeting – Friday 23rd January 2026



1. INTRODUCTION
During the fourth quarter of 2025, Manchester Airport continued to see passenger growth, delivering a strong performance in all key areas. In the period from October to December 2025, Manchester Airport served over 7.4 million passengers (7,438,283), reflecting a 4% increase compared to the same period in 2024. The individual monthly breakdown is as follows:
• October: 2,874,695
• November: 2,192,572
• December: 2,371,016
Manchester Airport’s 12-month rolling total is over 32 million passengers (32,088,626), reflecting a growth
of 4.2%.
During Q4, Manchester Airport sustained strong performance in both security and operational metrics. Security efficiency remained high, with 96% of passengers processed through security in 15 minutes or less, meeting our current target.
The period has delivered a series of major milestones as Manchester Airport moves closer to completing the 10-year, £1.3bn transformation of Terminal 2 (T2). In October and November, Pier 2 was brought into phased operational service, adding 13 flexible contact stands capable of accommodating both narrow-body and wide-body aircraft. The 13 stands include two dual airbridge stands that can handle aircraft from a Boeing 737 up to an A380, enabling simultaneous upper and lower deck boarding for larger aircraft. Pier 2 also features a new WHSmith, with an airline lounge offering direct boarding scheduled to open in 2026. The opening of Pier 2 represents one of the key deliverables of the Manchester Airport Transformation Programme.
In November, EasyJet and Emirates became the final airlines to relocate from Terminal 1 (T1) to T2, enabling the permanent closure of T1 and marking the airport’s transition to a two-terminal operation. This was supported by the completion of successful Operational, Readiness, Activation and Transition (ORAT) trials of a new section of Taxiway Echo. The new taxiway infrastructure marks a significant step towards dual taxiway operations, allowing two aircraft (including wide-body aircraft) to taxi side by side, improving airfield efficiency and capacity. Works continue on the remaining section of Taxiway Echo, along with the phased introduction of new airfield ground lighting.
The completion of the airline moves programme means Ryanair is now the only airline operating from Terminal 3, with passengers departing through Terminal 1 Departures A and arriving at Terminal 3.
To conclude, the final quarter of 2025 has been a strong period for Manchester Airport, reinforcing our upward trajectory. With this momentum and the final stages of MAN-TP, we have successfully completed our airline moves programme, alongside welcoming several new routes to the airport including Delhi, Bangkok and Islamabad.

2. GOVERNMENT ENGAGEMENT AND POLICY
Throughout Q4, Manchester Airport and its Public Affairs team have participated in several events and
engagements to represent its interests; a continuation of the successful stakeholder engagement with key
influencers that took place in the previous quarter.

Visits to Manchester Airport
Manchester Airport has hosted several successful visits with political stakeholders across Q4 2025. In October, we hosted Amanda Hack (MP for North West Leicestershire, and constituency MP for East Midlands Airport), Richard Holden (MP for Basildon and Billericay and Shadow Transport Secretary) and Jim McMahon (MP for Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton). In December, we welcomed Fusun Aramaz, Consul General to Turkey in Manchester.

Prime Minister’s India Delegation
Managing Director, Chris Woodroofe, joined the Prime Minister and delegation of senior business figures from across the UK on a four-day trade mission to India. This mission coincided with the launch of our direct route to Delhi from Manchester Airport, operated by IndiGo who launched their route to Mumbai in the summer. At the same time as the route announcement, Manchester Airport welcomed James Murray MP, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, to highlight the opportunities the new connections create for trade, tourism, and jobs across the region. Keir Starmer welcomed the new direct route between Manchester and Delhi, highlighting its role in boosting jobs, business opportunities, and growth; and commended Manchester Airport for bringing the benefits of the UK-India trade deal to the North. The addition of this new route, as well as the increase in frequency to Mumbai means that we now offer 9 direct flights to India per week.
External and Government Engagements

• Jo Platt MP for Leigh and Atherton Meeting: Corporate Affairs Director, Rhys Whalley, met with Jo
Platt, providing an update on MAN-TP milestones and the growth of our network. The meeting focused
on identifying key priorities and exploring opportunities through the GM All-Party Parliamentary Group
(APPG) to showcase MAN’s investment infrastructure and contribution to Northern Growth.

• Pro Manchester Transport Lunch: Corporate Affairs Director, Rhys Whalley, attended as a panellist at
Pro Manchester’s annual Transport Lunch, focusing on developments in the transport sector. The event
included a discussion led by Andy Burnham and Huw Merriman on the future of rail, including updates
on the Liverpool–Manchester Railway Board and the Northern Arc projects. Rhys sat on the second
panel, examining the role of transport in supporting regional growth and the opportunities created by
effective transport systems.

• Sustainable Aviation Northwest Roundtable, Manchester Airport: Chris Woodroofe spoke at a
roundtable organised by Sustainable Aviation that took place at Manchester Airport on Friday 21
November. The roundtable focused on key regional aviation decarbonisation initiatives including those
that are being supported by Manchester Airport, namely its partnership with Sustainable Aviation Fuel
(SAF) producer NorthPointe, who are working to establish a SAF production site at Stanlow in Cheshire;
and its role in the North West’s HyNet project which aims to produce low-carbon hydrogen and
develop carbon capture and storage sites.

• Rail Integration Roundtable: On Wednesday 10 December, Rhys Whalley and Chris Woodroofe
attended a Rail Integration Roundtable, hosted at Manchester Airport and arranged in partnership with
Transport for Greater Manchester. The roundtable, chaired by Vernon Everitt, Transport Commissioner
for Greater Manchester and Chair of Transport for Wales, brought together senior business leaders to
explore how businesses can influence and advocate for rail integration to support economic growth.
The session facilitated discussions on the current rail operating context and Transport for Greater
Manchester’s vision for rail integration and reform across Greater Manchester and the Northwest. A
key focus of the roundtable was to gather business feedback on the proposed rail vision, build
confidence in the plan, and establish an ongoing dialogue with stakeholders to ensure business
priorities are reflected in future rail developments.

• Greater Manchester University Group: The Public Affairs teams presented to key Greater Manchester
(GM) Universities and the GMCA International Team highlighting key MAN-TP milestones and the
growth of our route network in 2025. Discussions focused on ways to deepen collaboration, including
information sharing, to support both MAN and GM University priorities.

These engagements provided the Public Affairs team with opportunities to share updates on MAN-TP,
passenger numbers and route updates as well as the latest results from the Q3 Trade Barometer; Manchester Airport and MAG’s annual Sustainability Report; and upcoming opportunities such as Meet the Buyers and the Manchester Airport Career Festival.
Liverpool-Manchester Rail / NPR
Over the past quarter, members of the Rail Board have been awaiting confirmation on future funding decisions for the Liverpool–Manchester rail scheme and Northern Powerhouse Rail. Key stakeholders, including Manchester Airport, are jointly coordinating efforts to maintain ongoing dialogue with government regarding when an announcement is expected.

3. PLANNING MATTERS

Changes to National Planning Policy:

Planning and Infrastructure Act
The Government’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill to reform the planning system received Royal Assent on 18th December 2025. There are provisions in the Act that will deliver fundamental reform to the planning system and speed up the delivery of critical infrastructure, including major transport projects. Planning Committee reform and a national scheme of delegation (delegating more application decisions to Officers and focusing the time of elected councillors on the most significant or controversial applications) are amongst the changes of particular interest. Government will consult on detailed regulations to bring these provisions into force in 2026.

National Planning Policy Framework consultation
The Government published its revised draft National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) on 16 December
2025 with public consultation on the proposed changes until 10 March 2026. It represents a major shift in
planning policy, with substantial changes to support economic growth and housing delivery. There is an
expanded presumption in favour of sustainable development that would apply to all development within
settlements; changes to embed a vision-led approach to transport; and changes to simplify and improve the approach to climate change, conserving and enhancing the natural environment and heritage assets.
The introduction of new ‘national decision-making policies’ (NDMPs) is aimed at reducing inconsistencies with outdated local plans. Existing local plans adopted before this NPPF will carry "very limited weight" in decision making where they contradict the new NDMPs. MAG will be compiling representations to the consultation draft.

Consultation on reforms to the Statutory Consultee system
Government is also seeking views on reforming the role of statutory consultees in the planning system.
Proposals include removing statutory consultee status from certain bodies, reviewing the scope of what statutory consultees advise on and improving performance by statutory consultee bodies. These reforms are aimed at reducing delays and uncertainty in the application decision making. MAG are reviewing the proposals and will submit a response ahead of the 13 January 2026 consultation expiry.

Local Planning Policy:
Manchester City Council published the draft Manchester Local Plan for public consultation from 22 September, until 17th November 2025. The draft Plan contains policies for the Manchester Airport Strategic Site; Aviation Noise; Manchester Airport Public Safety Zones and Aerodrome Safeguarding; all of which have been developed in collaboration with MAG. Policy relating to the MIX Manchester (formerly known as Airport City) site to the north of the Airport is also included. Manchester Airport submitted supportive representations.
Trafford Council consulted on the draft Trafford Local Plan Site Allocations and Designations from 22
September until 3 November 2025. This part of their Local Plan covers sites for new residential and
employment development. MAG’s principal interest continues to be with the Places for Everyone Plan (PfE)
strategic allocation JPA 3.2 Timperley Wedge (Davenport Green) and associated sustainable transport
infrastructure requirements.
Stockport Council published their new draft Local Plan for consultation between 6 November and 17
December 2025. The draft Plan contains policies on aviation noise and aerodrome safeguarding that MAG
have commented on. We also made representations against a housing allocation in Heald Green that is
located within the airport’s noise contours and very close to final approach.
Cheshire East Council is developing a new Local Transport Plan (LTP) and, following consultation on the draft vision and aims that took place in early 2025, published the draft LTP Strategy and Investment Framework for consultation from 13 October to 7 December 2025. The LTP Strategy and Investment Framework will guide how transport improvements across Cheshire East are planned, prioritised and delivered. The Strategy is set around four aims: growing the economy; improving the wellbeing of our community; reducing environmental impacts; and improving connections for all. The Investment Framework identifies key investment packages to provide direction on where investment would be most beneficial and on prioritisation of investment packages.
‘Connecting with Manchester Airport’ forms one of the place-specific investment packages that will focus on improved sustainable travel connections with Manchester Airport through measures such as a rail/light rail service, bus connections and improvements to active travel, including links to the Orbital walking and cycling loop and development of the Bollin Valley Trail. The ‘Connecting with Manchester Airport’ package has been identified as one of nine key investment packages that are likely to provide the greatest benefit and that will be the initial focus of the LTP, with investment into schemes within these packages being accelerated.

Airport or near Airport developments:

• Airport Car Parking – Works continue at the Clough Bank B site (close to the Runway Visitor Park) for
additional Meet and Greet storage parking. The first phase of spaces is now expected to be delivered
in early 2026. Following acquisition last year of the former ‘Care Park’ car park at Boundary Farm
(land off Styal Road, immediately to the south of Staff East), we submitted a planning application in
December for the demolition of the glasshouses and creation of a replacement surface car park that
will be operated in our JetParks self-park format. We are hoping to receive a decision around Easter.

• Airport Hotels – Construction continues at the 7-storey, 154-bedroom Dakota brand hotel on land off
Enterprise Way and Bailey Lane, close to the former Etrop Grange hotel. This development is being
led by a third party rather than MAG. Construction is due to start on the 9-storey, 276-bedroom
Premier Inn hotel on land between the Voyager office building and the Tribe hotel early in the new
year.

4. MANCHESTER AIRPORT TRANSFORMATION PROGRAMME (MAN-TP)

We are in the final stages of Phase Two of MAN-TP, our £1.3 billion transformation programme designed to revolutionise the Airport experience for customers, colleagues, and partners; with the majority of our major Terminal 2 (T2) milestones now complete.
T2 Arrivals: The retail units in T2 Arrivals East are now open providing even more choice for passengers. Costa, Greggs and WHSmith, have joined the existing retail units KFC, Wrapchic, Starbucks, Pret A Manger, and M&S Simply Food. An interim route for Domestic Arrivals is now live whilst we finalise the South Vertical Circulation Core, which will open up the end-state route.
T2 Check-in: Works are now complete in Zone A of Check-in East, meaning all check-in zones are live and
operational. Overall, across T2 Zones A–G, there are now 118 bag-drops, 200 kiosks, 48 exception desks,
12 referrals desks and 24 hybrid desks.
Pier 2: Pier 2 was opened in phases throughout October and November, adding 13 flexible stands, a new
WHSmith, and an airline lounge with direct boarding opening in 2026. The 13 stands include a dual airbridge capable of handling everything from a 737 to an A380, allowing simultaneous upper and lower deck boarding for larger aircraft.
Airfield: Successful Operational, Readiness, Activation and Transition (ORAT) trials have brought a new section of Taxiway Echo into operation marking a key milestone for dual taxiway operations. Dual operations let two aircraft taxi side by side, improving airfield efficiency and capacity. Works continue on the remaining section of Taxiway Echo and the phasing of new Airfield Ground Lighting.
T2 Departures East: Our brand-new passenger walkway from T2 Security East to the east side of Departures has now opened. Two identical walkways now lead passengers to the centre of the Departure Lounge. The area includes a new World Duty Free and the Boutique Mall, where we opened the impressive Fever-Tree cocktail and gin bar, with new retail units coming soon.
T2 Chandeliers: Manchester Airport has partnered with the Manchester School of Architecture and a local
artist Lazerian, to reimagine our iconic chandeliers from Terminal 1. Following a public vote where we asked for feedback on some design concepts, work is underway to build and install our reimagined chandeliers. They will be located in the new T2 Security East area.

5. OPERATIONAL DATA
On Time Performance (OTP)
Departure on-time performance is dependent on several factors including weather, airfield operations,
technical issues. Monthly performance for the past financial year across all flight types are outlined below:

OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT – ROUTES AND SERVICES

• During the final quarter of the calendar year (October 2025 - December 2025), 7.4m passengers
travelled through Manchester Airport, a 4% increase versus the same period in 2024, with all months
achieving growth.
• December 2025 saw Manchester Airport's rolling 12-month passenger figure surpass 32 million for
the first time ever.
• Manchester Airport's busiest day in the IATA Winter Season was recorded in October, with 107,285
passengers travelling on 26 October (the first time the airport has seen over 105,000 passengers use
the airport in a day in the winter season).
• The year-on-year passenger growth has largely been driven by Ryanair and easyJet, who delivered
+97k and +67k respectively, as compared to the previous year.
• There was also significant full-service carrier growth from Etihad Airways (+50k), Aer Lingus Short Haul
(+24k), and Turkish Airlines (+24k). Indigo's launch has also contributed +35k passengers.
There have been numerous developments to Manchester Airport’s network in the quarter, including:
• Following the success of their Mumbai route earlier in July, IndiGo went on to launch a x5 weekly
service to Delhi, taking total service frequency to India to x9 weekly
• Norse Atlantic successfully launched their x1 weekly flight to Bangkok in November
• In October, Pakistan International Airlines returned to Manchester for the first time in 5 years, launching
a x3 weekly service to Islamabad
• New domestic routes to Southampton (daily) and Exeter (x5 weekly) were launched by Loganair in
October
• EasyJet announced in November that it will commence two new routes from Manchester to Montpellier
and Preveza in 2026
• Jet2 announced several new routes for 2027, including Jersey, Bergerac, Hurghada and Sharm-El-
Sheikh, all to launch from Manchester throughout the year.

6. CAR PARKING & SURFACE ACCESS

• Landside Operations: The landside control room assisted 183,206 customers via our car park
intercoms during Sept26 – Dec26, representing a 46% decrease on the same period in 2024. This
decrease is a result of all forecourts becoming a barrierless process and is consistent with observations
since implementation. 96% of vehicle using forecourts at Manchester have exited the estate in under
10 minutes, 86% under 5 minutes.
T2 airline moves have seen traffic flow challenges on both entrance and exit of the landside estate.
Traffic signal changes were implemented at the beginning of December and as a result traffic flow has
significantly improved on exiting the estate.
Trials are ongoing and further changes are being tested and implemented on T2 flag island at the
entry to the estate, with a full traffic modelling review being conducted by AECOM in January 2026.

• Landside Bussing: Landside Bussing performed strongly, supported with continued above target NPS
performance throughout the quarter.

• Car Parking: Car park occupancy averaged 98% throughout the quarter, across all self-park and Meet
& Greet products, with both self-park and Meet & Greet continuing to perform very well. NPS scores
dropped in Oct / Dec due primarily to the changes in the car park names at T2. Wayfinding was the
main impacting reason and interventions that were introduced in July were reinforced. Capacity
balancing continued across the estate to mitigate the continued space loss of T1Multi-Storey Car Park
& Clough Bank B delays. Cloud migration for Park IT (as referenced in the previous quarter) was
completed for all products, improving the reliability of the system and offering service enhancements
from a reporting perspective. Recruitment activity paused as we achieved FTE in June, and this
continued through the summer. All manager roles were also filled with recruitment helping us achieve
a stable operation through the first half of the winter period. The operation moved a record 39,068
vehicles through the festive period, with T2 requiring a record 10,000 storage spaces.

• Manchester Airport Transport Forum: The forum met on 25th November 2025. The role of the Airport
Transport Forum is to seek to improve accessibility and increase public transport use to and from
airports for staff and passengers, aiming to reduce the environmental impact of travel. This year the
theme of the event was ‘connectivity’. The event was well attended by over 100 delegates representing
a variety of organisations and has received positive feedback. Presentations at the event related to the
planning or delivery of enhanced connectivity/improved connections to the airport across all modes of
transport.

• Platform Lengthening Scheme: Network Rail (NWR) successfully secured the funding to lengthen the
platforms at Manchester Airport Station. The platforms will allow us to receive longer passenger trains,
hence increasing rail passenger capacity. We are now working with NWR to develop a mobilisation
plan, so that we can fully understand the construction process and the impact on passenger rail services
during construction.

• CAA Data Report: In December 2025, we received confirmation that Manchester airport was the
busiest airport rail station outside of London, with 5.5 million passengers passing through the gate line
last year. We aspire to increase the number of passengers travelling by rail to the airport and will
continue to work with rail stakeholders to help us enhance the passenger experience on the airport
routes.

• Overnight TransPennine Express Manchester Airport train services from May 2026: In December 2025, we received confirmation that from May 2026, TransPennine Express will introduce additional
overnight rail services between Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly as part of the Spring
timetable change. The move marks a significant step in improving connectivity to one of the UK’s
busiest international gateways and supports employment and the late-night economy of Manchester.
The overnight services will provide vital new travel options for customers catching early-morning or
returning on late-night flights; employees working at the airport; and those travelling during the night-
time economy.

The new services from TransPennine Express are part of Greater Manchester’s wider programme to
bring rail into the Bee Network by the end of the decade. This includes future improvements such as
contactless ‘tap in, tap out’ ticketing; simpler fares; upgraded stations and better real-time travel
information, helping to create a more seamless customer experience across bus, tram and rail.

• Ardwick Blockade: In February 2026, for a two-week period, Manchester Airport will not receive any
rail services via the Manchester Piccadilly Line, as it will be closed for essential works. We have been
working closely with TfGM, NWR and Rail Operators to understand and plan how we can facilitate the
movement of multiple rail replacement buses, through an already busy Ground Transport Interchange
(GTI) at the airport. There will be a number of extra buses expected, requiring careful management.
We will continue to work with the Manchester Airport communication team to promote information for
passengers and raise awareness of the rail-replacement offer, during this time of disruption.

• New Rail Fares: Passengers travelling across Greater Manchester will now benefit from simpler, clearer,
and more flexible rail fares, thanks to a major reform. The introduction of fare simplification replaced
the previous range of operator-specific tickets with just two options for same-day travel: Anytime and
Off-Peak. These new fares apply to all train operators serving the region. Single fares are priced at
exactly half the cost of a return, delivering a simple, consistent system that benefits all passengers -
whether commuting, travelling for business, or exploring the region. Advance and season tickets
remain available for those who wish to plan ahead, while off-peak fares apply from 0930 to 1600
and from 1830 onwards on weekdays, and all day on weekends and bank holidays.

• Staff Rail Travel: In response to the new rail fares, Manchester Airport have been working in
collaboration with TransPennine Express to offer a reduced rate on the Manchester Airport Staff Travel
Card. This card provides MAG-approved colleagues with a 25% discount on train travel between their
home station and Manchester Airport. This card is normally £20 to purchase. From Monday 05
January to Friday 30 January inclusive; anyone based at Manchester Airport who holds a Manchester
Airport Security Pass can apply for the staff discount Travel Card at a reduced rate of £10.

• GTI Enhancement Project: In collaboration with key stakeholders including TransPennine Trains and
Transport for Greater Manchester, we continue to work on plans to enhance the GTI to improve the
passenger experience.

Projects currently in the planning stage include the following:

- New Rail Passenger Screens which will display rail and wider public transport information and
will be relocated to a more central location within the atrium waiting area.
- New seating to be installed in the GTI, offering more places to sit and wait for public transport
services.
- Development of a new dedicated passenger assistance area, which will allow passengers who
require additional support to transition to/from rail services more easily, and to also connect
to support from Manchester Airport teams who can then assist with the journey to terminals.
- Opportunities to relocate the current rail ticket office into a more central location within the
GTI. This should then allow us to repurpose the current ticket office space, opening it up so
that rail passengers arriving from the station, can exit and navigate to terminals more easily.
- Updated wayfinding/signage across the GTI and wider campus signposting passengers to the
GTI.

7. MOBILITY SERVICES

• CAA rating: We have seen extremely strong performance across all our key measures for Special
Assistance services. Our key performance measures for the Civil Aviation Authority - to assist pre-
booked arriving passengers within 20 minutes, and non-booked arriving passengers within 45 minutes
- are at 99.36% and 99.85% respectively for the financial year to date, exceeding CAA targets.
Having seen record PRM volumes in May, August and September 2025, we continued to see growth
in passengers with reduced mobility (PRMs) for the remainder of the calendar year 2025. PRM
satisfaction remains very strong at 4.33/5, which exceeds target of 4/5 for a ‘Very Good’ rating.

• Passenger experience: Strong performance in all our key measures has been seen throughout the year
to date, including customer feedback; with satisfaction scores exceeding CAA target for a ‘Very Good’
rating and a year-on-year reduction in the number of complaints.
PRM Volumes (Prior 3 Months)

 

[BlueManc]

Very interesting as ever, but this seems quite retrospective and hardly indicates what is to come. i.e. new route development, T1 refurb plans, extra stand capacity. Was there a timeline on the T1 refurb and what of the extra remote stand exercise?

 

[LS@MAN]

Very interesting as ever, but this seems quite retrospective and hardly indicates what is to come. i.e. new route development, T1 refurb plans, extra stand capacity. Was there a timeline on the T1 refurb and what of the extra remote stand exercise?

A lot of this information (the examples you mention) will be sensitive and confidential in most cases, so we wouldn’t expect to hear such info.
The MACC meeting looks back at the last 3 months and what is upcoming in the near future.

Ref T1 refurb, there is no T1 refurb, it will eventually be demolished. The current set up with T1A departures and T3 infrastructure will remain for now.
It was already mentioned on this forum a while ago that once the cargo sheds are demolished, there will be 20 new code C stands built. Timeline wise I have no idea, but I believe during December there were survey works ongoing at the cargo sheds area.

Finally, the traffic situation into and out of T2 and the surrounding areas is well known and options are being looked into with regards to have to improve the overall flow.

 

[BlueManc]

Sorry, meant T3 refurb.

 

[LS@MAN]

Sorry, meant T3 refurb.

Nothing was mentioned ref T3.
It’s been reported on this forum and online that the new bar upstairs will be open in March. The rest of the improvements are due to be finished by the summer but I couldn’t see or hear any sign of this when I passed through T3 on 12th January.

 

[BlueManc]

Anyone seen the April minutes?

 

[Scottie Dog]

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you #BlueManc, however I have been away from home. The next MACC meeting is on 17th July and I would expect to see the minutes appear about a week in advance - if I manage to cadge a copy!!
You can always find more details for the meetings at https://www.manchesterairport.co.uk/community/consultative-committee/

Regards

Scottie Dog

 

[Scottie Dog]

Okay, better late than never - as they say!!

I am rather time restricted at present and therefore I will just copy the report by Chris Woodroofe to the committee and then add any brief observations that I may have noted from the meeting itself.

Manchester Airport Consultative Committee (MACC)
Report of the Managing Director
Reporting period April - June 2026
MACC Meeting – Friday 17th July 2026

Contents
1. INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................. 1
2. GOVERNMENT ENGAGEMENT AND POLICY ..................................................................... 2
3. PLANNING MATTERS ......................................................................................................... 5
4. MANCHESTER AIRPORT TRANSFORMATION PROGRAMME (MAN-TP) ........................... 6
5. OPERATIONAL DATA.......................................................................................................... 7
6. CAR PARKING & SURFACE ACCESS .................................................................................. 9
7. MOBILITY SERVICES ........................................................................................................ 10
8. STAFFING ......................................................................................................................... 10
9. CUSTOMER INSIGHT & SECURITY ISSUES...................................................................... 10
10. COMMUNITY MATTERS ............................................................................................... 12
11. FUTURE AIRSPACE ....................................................................................................... 15
12. MANCHESTER AIRPORT IN THE NEWS........................................................................ 17

1. INTRODUCTION
During the second quarter of 2026, Manchester Airport continued to see passenger growth,
delivering a strong performance in all key areas. From the period between April to June 2026,
Manchester Airport has served a total of over 8.5 million passengers (8,562,146), in line with the
same period in 2026. The individual monthly breakdown is as follows, April (2,567,452), May
-month rolling total is over 32 million passengers (32,259,315), reflecting growth of 2.27%.
During Q2 2026, Manchester Airport maintained strong performance across both security and
operational metrics. Overall, 96.9% of passengers were processed through security within 15
minutes, in line with the established target. Performance remained consistently high throughout
the quarter, with 98.9% achieved in May, 94% in April, and 98.9% in March, all within target
thresholds.
Manchester Airport has continued to make significant progress during Q2 as the £1.5bn
transformation of Terminal 2 enters its final stages ahead of completion later this year.
Within T2 Departures East, the airport's premium retail and hospitality offering has expanded with
the opening of the UK's first standalone airport CHANEL store, alongside new arrivals including
La Labo, Tom Ford, Jo Malone and Coach. Reiss has also been confirmed as the final Boutique
Mall retailer, with fit-out underway ahead of its planned opening later this summer. Looking
ahead, preparations are progressing for the opening of The Belle Vue, Manchester Airport's first
Wetherspoon pub, which will complete the Transformation Programme's final commercial unit in
September.
The Terminal 1 chandelier glass has also been given a new lease of life with the completion of a
new art installation: Atmospheric Reflections of the North in T2 Security East. Created by local
artist Liam Hopkins in collaboration with students from the Manchester School of Architecture,
the installation celebrates the North's heritage, the airport's history and the many people who
have contributed to the Terminal 2 Transformation Programme.
Manchester Airport's route network continued to strengthen this quarter, with a mix of new airline
launches, new destination additions, and increased capacity on existing services. Key
developments included the arrival of Air Algerie, new European routes from Ryanair, easyJet and
Jet2, the announcement of Riyadh Air's future Manchester service, expanded long-haul
operations by Norse Atlantic, PIA and Singapore Airlines, further enhancing the airport's
connectivity across Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
With major retail, hospitality and placemaking milestones now complete, Manchester Airport
remains firmly on track to deliver the final phase of the Terminal 2 Transformation Programme
later this year, further enhancing the passenger experience and strengthening its position as the
UK's global gateway to the North.
2. GOVERNMENT ENGAGEMENT AND POLICY
Throughout Q2 2026, Manchester Airport and its Public Affairs team continued to participate in
a range of events and stakeholder engagements to represent and advance the airport's interests.
Through strong stakeholder engagement with key political, business and community influencers,
the team strengthened relationships and supported the airport's strategic objectives.
Northern Growth Manchester Airport and MAG continue to engage in key strategic conversations with regional partners and government on the Northern Growth Strategy.

Key activities include:

Engagement in Northern Growth Arc conversations with GMCA at senior leadership and
working group levels.

Representation at the Northern Growth Strategy Reception, hosted by Northern
Powerhouse Partnership (NPP), focused on ensuring the Northern Growth Strategy
translates into delivery, bring together those who will have a role in the delivery, whilst
also reflecting on the progress already made.

Discussions with the CBI Yorkshire and Humber team focused on engagement with key
stakeholders across the Pennines.

Attendance at the Yorkshire Infrastructure Summit, a conference focused on regional
development and collaboration.

Participation in Connecting the Northern Powerhouse panel event at UKREIIF focusing on
Northern Powerhouse Rail and Liverpool-Manchester Rail, as well as a panel on the role
of Airports in driving regional economic growth.

Visits & Events
Civil Service Leadership Group visit

Manchester Airport hosted a delegation of senior civil servants as part of the Civil Service
Leadership Group's annual conference in Manchester. The visit included a tour of Terminal 2
and the airfield, providing delegates with an overview of the airport's operations and its role
in supporting regional and international connectivity.
The visit enabled engagement with senior representatives from several government
departments, including the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the Department for
Business and Trade, and the Home Office. Discussions focused on the airport's contribution
to the Government's priorities around economic growth, international connectivity and
decarbonisation, as well as the role of aviation in supporting sustainable regional
development.

DfT Permanent Secretary and Director General for Aviation, Maritime and Security
Manchester Airport welcomed Jo Shanmugalingam, Permanent Secretary at the Department
for Transport, and Ashley Ibbett, Director General for Aviation, Maritime and Security.
The visit provided an opportunity to demonstrate the scale and breadth of Manchester
included tours of the Aerozone, the Ground Transport Interchange, Terminal 2 and the airfield,
showcasing ongoing investment in infrastructure, passenger experience and operational
resilience.

Discussions with senior leadership focused on the airport's contribution to regional and national economic growth, its role in supporting international trade and connectivity, and the importance of aviation in enabling the UK's decarbonisation and sustainability ambitions, including the development of long-haul routes and the strategic value of maintaining and growing global air links from the North of England.

The delegation also met with Hainan Airlines, which is celebrating 10 years of operations from
Manchester and direct routes between Manchester and Beijing, providing an opportunity to
highlight the strength and longevity of key international partnerships and to discuss future
long-haul growth opportunities.

Senior Civil Service North West tour with MAN & Border Force
Eighteen senior civil servants from across the North West attended a visit to Manchester
Airport focused on public-private partnerships, investment, and regional growth. The programme was designed to provide insight into how major infrastructure assets and cross-sector collaboration can support economic development across the region.

The visit was delivered in partnership with the Head of Place North West and Border Force
UK. Delegates received a guided tour of operations at Manchester Airport, including Terminal
2 and the airfield, providing first-hand insight into passenger processing, airside operations,
and the role of Border Force in supporting secure and efficient international connectivity.
WIG Pilot Programme Visit
Manchester Airport hosted the second session of the Whitehall Industry Group GM Pilot Programme. The session focused on Systems Thinking and Cross-Sector Collaboration Around Growth.
Andrew MacMillan, MAG Chief Strategy Officer, gave a presentation on the Business' strategy and the delivery of transformational programmes (including MAN-TP).
Adam Freeman, Decarbonisation and ESG Director and Jo Jackson, Senior Education and
Employment Manager, shared MAG's Sustainability Strategy, focusing on decarbonisation projects and Manchester's skills and employment programmes.

The presentations enabled Senior Civil Servants and Local Industry Leaders to understand
the depth and breadth of work across the business to unlock regional growth.

MP Visits to Manchester Airport

During Q2, Manchester Airport welcomed Elsie Blundell and Esther McVey on separate
visits. Each visit provided an opportunity to meet with the airport's senior leadership team
to discuss the airport's strategic priorities, its contribution to the regional economy and
future ambitions.

Both visits also included a tour of the almost-complete Terminal 2, providing an update on
the Transformation Programme and demonstrating the enhanced facilities that will support
future passenger growth.

External Engagement
Senior Leadership and the Public Affairs team have had extensive external engagement
over the last quarter including:
o Ongoing engagement with TfGM focused on improving collaboration across the site
o Representation at the Manchester Business Sounding Board
o Representation at the Parish Council
o Introduction meeting with the North Cheshire Chamber of Commerce new Chief
Operating Officer
o Deputy Governor Bank of England event with North Cheshire Chamber
o Good Growth Summit Reception
o Q2 CBI Regional council & CBI North West annual lunch
Chief Operations Officer, Pete Lederer, represented Manchester as a panellist at the Buro
sector is responding to topics such as growth, the need for integrated transport systems,
enhancing the passenger experience, maximising commercial income, and delivering a
sustainability agenda.
Chris Woodroofe and Rhys Whalley attended the Mayoral Summit, hosted in Leeds as part
of UKREiiF, attending sessions focused on the Northern Growth Strategy and Chris
represented Manchester Airport at UKREiiF as a panellist on two sessions:
1. From East to West: Connecting the Northern Powerhouse
2. Airport Economic Zones: Why now and what's next
The Public Affairs team attended the inaugural Women in Public Affairs North, a regional
affairs and policy sector in the North.
Rhys Whalley represented Manchester Airport on the ‘Cheshire & Warrington stepping onto the Northwest Stage" at the launch conference of the Cheshire and Warrington Combined Authority. The panel explored how major infrastructure assets are driving growth, investment and connectivity across the region. The panel focused on the role of key transport and economic hubs in shaping Cheshire and Warrington's future position within the North West economy.
Senior Public Affairs Manager Elizabeth Hampson represented Manchester Airport at
May, with an opportunity to discuss priorities, challenges, and opportunities following
local election results.
International Engagement Hainan Airlines celebrated 10 years of operating services between Manchester and Beijing (PEK) in June. To mark this milestone, Manchester Airport hosted the Lord Mayor of
Manchester and the Consul General to China in Manchester for a commemorative event
at the airport, followed by a private dinner. The celebrations highlighted the significant
economic, business and cultural benefits the route has delivered to both Greater
Manchester and Beijing over the past decade.
Airport for a tour of Terminal 2.
Rhys Whalley attended a roundtable with the International Strategy Advisory Council.
Elizabeth Hampson represented Manchester Airport at the Sister City Agreement signing
between Manchester and Austin, Texas – a formal agreement marking the latest step in a
longstanding partnership between Greater Manchester and Austin, and welcoming closer
collaboration on trade and culture as MAN continues to build on the strength of its US
relationships.
3. PLANNING MATTERS
Changes to National Planning Policy: National Scheme of Delegation for Planning Decisions
MHCLG laid draft regulations in Parliament on 1st June that will, subject to Parliamentary
approval, introduce a national scheme of delegation for planning application decisions across
England. The regulations set out the following general approach to decision making:
Schedule 1: those applications which must always be delegated to planning officers for a
decision – includes applications for minor residential and commercial development,
householder development and discharge of condition applications.
Schedule 2: those which are presumed to be delegated to officers but which, in certain
defined circumstances can be considered by Planning Committees – includes larger
applications for planning permission not set out in Schedule 1 and applications for listed
building consent.
The test for whether to take Schedule 2 applications to Committee requires the Chief Planning
Officer and the Chair of the Committee to agree that the application meets one of the two
following criteria:
A. where the application raises an economic, social or environmental issue of significance
to the local area
B. where the application raises a significant planning matter having regard to the
development plan and any other material considerations
The new scheme of delegation is due to come into force on 31 October 2026.

Heathrow Expansion National Policy Statement

The Government is consulting on the draft Heathrow Expansion National Policy Statement
(HENPS). This was previously known as the Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS) and has
been renamed to clarify that it only applies to Heathrow expansion and its associated
infrastructure. The HENPS is a planning policy framework for assessing any future Heathrow
expansion proposals, including against the G key tests on: economic growth,
carbon (climate), air quality and noise. We will be reviewing the draft policy statement and
making appropriate representations
Local Planning Policy:
Manchester City Council are currently working through the representations received on their
autumn 2025 draft Local Plan in advance of a further draft Plan being issued for consultation in
the summer.
Cheshire East Council published their timetable to prepare their new local plan on 12 June 2026.
This will be prepared using the G new process which requires plans to be produced
within a strict 30-month timeframe. The formal process of engagement will start with a scoping
consultation that is intended to run between 21 July and 1 September 2026.
Cheshire East Council adopted their new Local Transport Plan (LTP) on 13 May 2026. The new
strategy and investment framework will guide the planning, prioritisation, and delivery of
transport improvements across Cheshire East. forms one of the place-specific investment packages that will focus on improved sustainable travel connections with the Airport. It is one of nine priorities that will be the initial focus of investment.

Airport or near Airport developments:

Airport car parking – The first phase of Meet and Greet storage parking is now open at
the Cloughbank B site. Further phases will open progressively over this year. The planning
application for reconfigured car parking at Boundary Fram (immediately to the south of
Staff East) is set to be determined at Planning Committee in late July.
Airport hotels – Construction is well underway on the 9-storey, 276-bedroom Premier Inn
hotel on land between the Voyager office building and the Tribe hotel close to the GTI.
The 7-storey, 154-bedroom Dakota brand hotel on land off Enterprise Way and Bailey Lane
opened on 1 July 2026.

4. MANCHESTER AIRPORT TRANSFORMATION PROGRAMME (MAN-TP)
We are in the final stages of Phase Two of MAN-TP, our £1.3 billion transformation programme
designed to revolutionise the Airport experience for customers, colleagues, and partners.
T2 Departures East
This May saw the opening of CHANEL in the Terminal 2 Departures Boutique Mall, marking the
launch of the first standalone Chanel store in a UK airport. This exciting addition further elevates
our luxury retail offering, alongside Boss and Fever-Tree.
This was closely followed by La Labo, Tom Ford, Jo Malone and Coach in June, bringing even
more world-renowned brands to Manchester Airport.
Premium clothing brand Reiss has been announced as the final addition to the Boutique Mall with
fit-out underway and plans to open at the end of summer 2026.
In September we will open the final unit as part of the whole Manchester Airport Transformation
Programme - Wetherspoon. Manchester Airport's first Wetherspoon pub will be named the Belle Vue and located in T2 Departures East (past the Great Northern Market). At 338 sqm, it will have
more than 300 seats, and its design will be inspired by the history of Belle Vue and the sporting
culture of the North West of England.
T2 Chandeliers: began a project to reimagine the original Terminal 1 chandeliers using their original glass components. The glass that once illuminated Terminal 1 has been repurposed into a new art installation, which has now been installed in the newly refurbished Terminal 2 Security East as part of its £1.3bn transformation.
Local artist Liam Hopkins from Lazerian worked with students from the Manchester School of
Architecture to turn the historic glass into a centre-piece called “Atmospheric Reflections of the
North past as a parachute regiment training centre, with inspiration drawn from stories shared by the
community, passengers, and colleagues. Each of the 482 parachutes/chandelier droplets carries a unique aluminium hexagon tag dedicated to an individual or an organisation that has played a part in the Manchester Airport Transformation Programme.
This installation will create a lasting connection between the artwork and the thousands of people
history

5. OPERATIONAL DATA

OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT – ROUTES AND SERVICES
FY27 Q1 Update During Q1 FY27 (April 2026 - June 2026), 8.6m passengers travelled through Manchester
Airport, in line with the same period in 2026.
As a result of the Middle Eastern conflict there was a notable decrease to passenger
numbers in April versus prior year, however this has since recovered with both May and
June being the busiest recorded for each month respectively.
There has been strong passenger growth by Ryanair and Jet2, who delivered +232k and
+82k above previous year each respectively.
The launch of new services to Asia by Indigo and PIA have also contributed +37k and
+23k each respectively.
Airlines based within the Middle East saw a particular reduction year-on-year, Emirates (-135k) and Qatar Airways (-38k), however all carriers have now re-instated their pre-
conflict schedules.

There have been numerous positive developments to Manchester Airport's network in the quarter, including: New airline, Air Algerie, launched its x2 weekly service to Algiers
Low-cost carriers Ryanair, easyJet and Jet2 collectively launched new routes to
Montpellier, Castellon, Rimini, Palermo, and Samos, all previously unserved destinations.
Riyadh Air announced it would commence flying to Manchester, with a x3 weekly schedule
to start within the S26 season.
Norse Atlantic announced it would re-commence and grow its Winter service to Bangkok,
with a x4 weekly schedule starting in December.
Following their return to MAN in 2025, PIA announced it would increase Islamabad to x4
weekly and resume flying to Lahore with a x1 weekly service from July.
Singapore Airlines confirmed that effective July they will move to a daily year-round
operation.
Hainan Airlines celebrated 10 years of direct routes between Manchester and Beijing in
June and will be introducing new aircraft this summer.

6. CAR PARKING & SURFACE ACCESS

Landside Operations: Between April and June 2026, a total of 2.16 million vehicles utilised
MAN forecourts. Operational performance remained strong, with 95.9% of vehicles
exiting within 10 minutes. Traffic flow across the estate continued to perform well, with
the longest recorded journey time from the M56 motorway, through the Terminal 2 drop
off forecourt and exiting the estate, reaching 11 minutes, including an average 4-minute
dwell time during the May Bank Holiday peak period. Additional initiatives focused on
optimising forecourt utilisation are planned for the summer period and are expected to
further enhance traffic flow and customer experience.
Following the implementation of the new P numbering wayfinding strategy across the
Terminal 3 road network, quarterly NPS wayfinding scores have shown a modest
improvement, increasing from 3.91 to 4.03. Further improvement is anticipated as updated
customer communications and booking confirmations are embedded. Performance will
continue to be closely monitored throughout the peak summer season.
In June, the old Terminal 3 forecourt was successfully converted from a drop off facility
to an Express Pick Up product, delivering an improved passenger collection experience.
Performance data will be monitored over the coming months to ensure operational
outcomes remain aligned with those achieved at the established Terminal 2 Express Pick
Up facility.

Car Parking: P Numbering was introduced across all Car Parks as part of the naming
strategy making finding a car park more passenger friendly. We increased self-park
capacity in T2 with an extra 215 at T2 East (P1) & a further 300 at T1 MSCP (P14). We also
opened P10 Drop & Go Express in the old T1 M&G area; this gives passengers a D&G
product between T3 & T2. We also opened Staff Central Car Park (P11) for airport partners
which is centrally located between T3 & T2 (the old T1 pick up area). Car Parks also
increased storage capacity by opening 3 storage car parks, these included Clough Bank
B with a capacity of 2100 & Thorley Lane A&B with a combined capacity of 1000. We also
opened a new T2 Reception area in Terminal 2 located next domestic arrivals, this facility
places all the returns lockers / keys in one location and is resourced 24 hours a day. FTE
for the summer is at headcount. In the first quarter the M&G operation moved 295,202
vehicles which is slightly down on sub 4 forecast. NPS increased from the previous
quarter from 3.95 to 4

Platform Lengthening Scheme: Network Rail (NWR) and their contractor are due to
commence mobilisation on site in June, as part of a programme to lengthen the platforms
at Manchester Airport Station. The platforms will allow us to receive longer passenger
trains, hence increasing rail passenger capacity.

Bus Service Update: has been working closely with
Transport for Greater Manchester We are keen to collaborate to
enable us to identify improvements to airport bus services, now that the fully franchised
service is in operation.

Overnight Manchester Airport train services from May 2026: Overnight rail services into
the Airport Station have now commenced (from May 2026). The move marks a significant
step in improving connectivity and supports employment and the late-night economy of
Manchester. The overnight services will provide vital new travel options for customers
catching early-morning or returning on late-night flights; employees working at the airport;
and those travelling during the night-time economy.
GTI Enhancement Project: In collaboration with key stakeholders including TransPennine
Trains and Transport for Greater Manchester, we continue to work on plans to enhance
the GTI to improve the passenger experience.
Active Travel England: The Airport successfully secured £100k Grant Funding to develop
a Local Walking and Cycling Improvement Plan for the Airport Campus. Engagement with
neighbouring Local Authorities has commenced, so that any Airport plans complement the
wider Active Travel networks.

7. MOBILITY SERVICES

CAA rating: We have seen extremely strong performance across all our key measures for
Assisted Travel services. Our key performance measures for the Civil Aviation Authority -
to assist pre-booked arriving passengers within 20 minutes, and non-booked arriving
passengers within 45 minutes for the financial year to date are at 99.15% and 99.87%
respectively, exceeding CAA targets.

We have continued to see year on year growth in passengers with reduced mobility
(PRMs) this year, significantly outstripping overall passenger growth. PRM satisfaction
remains very strong at 4.27/5, which exceeds . Passenger experience: Strong performance in all our key measures has been seen throughout the year to date, including customer feedback; with satisfaction scores
year-on-year reduction in the number of complaints.


8. CUSTOMER INSIGHT & SECURITY ISSUES

Customer Feedback

The team received a total of 5,932 cases during the reporting period, which represents a
decrease from 6,532 in the previous January to March period, and a significant decrease from
8,032 during the same period last year. We continuously work to minimise the impact on our
customers when delivering our services, which is why these data insights have been shared with
local teams to drive improvements.

Security GSS
The performance for passengers transiting security in 15-minutes or less is detailed below:

Apr 26 May 26 Jun 26

Complaints 1,240 1,294 1,538
Compliments 44 43 43
Suggestions & comments 147 116 141
Written enquiries 658 342 322
Complaints per 10k passengers 4.85 4.43 5.20
Average no of days to respond to
customers

Average time to respond for the reporting
period was 5 working days.

Social Media:
Over the reporting period, our social media channels received 29,191 messages and
welcomed 14,574 new followers across X, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok.
Analysis shows that the predominant sentiment was negative (44%). The top areas of
enquiry were security regulations, car park bookings, drop off/pick up, and lost property.
The top areas of issues related to hidden disabilities, airport experience, drop off/pick up,
and car parks.
The main campaigns during this period were:
o MAN-TP – Chandeliers, Shirley Baker before and after photos, Coach opening, awards
shortlisting's, BOSS opening, refurbished pier C, Wetherspoon announcement
o Comms – Monthly passenger stats, EES, T3 Express Pick Up area opening
o CSR – Bring your child to work day, meet our Journey Makers, FEU video series, World
Earth Day, Airport Academy, World Firefighter Day, Mental Health Awareness Week,
Airport Safety Week, Wilmslow Pride, Leading with Confidence in Aviation programme
o Aviation – SAS 60th anniversary, Singapore Airlines 40th anniversary, Icelandair 20th
anniversary, Traveller of the Month series: girls trip, On Board at MAN: Virgin Atlantic
& Cathay Pacific, Air Algerie inaugural, Virgin Atlantic 30th anniversary, Ryanair new
routes, Air France 80th anniversary,Hainan Airlines 10th anniversary
o Retail – National Burrito Day (Barburrito), Sol De Janeiro, National Carbonara Day
(Pasta Evangelists), JD England shirt competition, Terminal Explorer campaign, Gooey,
summer drinks, WDF Fabulous Fridays
o Other – World Pilot Day

9. COMMUNITY MATTERS

A detailed Community Engagement report has been provided as an addendum to this report.

Social Sustainability

Education

From April–June 2026, the Social Sustainability team supported 2,763 young people through our
education programmes. During this period, 832 students visited AeroZone, with 100% coming
from priority areas within a 15-mile radius of the airport, reinforcing our commitment to targeted
local engagement and early career inspiration. The AeroZone booking system reopened in April
for visits during the next academic year and reached 100% capacity by the end of the month,
demonstrating strong demand from schools and education partners.

This quarter we have launched a new Inclusion Zone within AeroZone, designed to promote
disability awareness in an engaging and interactive way, as well as careers in passenger
assistance. The space includes hands-on learning tools such as simulation spectacles for visual
impairments, Braille resources, British Sign Language learning materials and guidance on the role
of assistance dogs. This initiative, delivered in partnership with ABM, enhances our commitment
to inclusive education and helps young people better understand accessibility in both everyday
life and future workplaces.

In April we hosted 2 "Kids at Work Day" events, welcoming a total of 63 colleagues young
relatives for an interactive introduction to the airport environment. Across both sessions, the
children explored a variety of roles within AeroZone before taking part in an airside tour led by
Airfield Operations. Highlights included observing aircraft movements up close and learning how
to marshal in a fictitious aircraft. The experience concluded with practical activities at the Airport
Fire Station and a visit to the top of the Air Traffic Control Tower.

In May the Manchester Airport Fire & Rescue Service also hosted 12 Uniformed Services students
from Mosslands High School. The visit provided valuable insight into aviation firefighting, with
practical challenges designed to build teamwork and resilience while introducing students to
potential career pathways within emergency services.

In June, Manchester Airport and Pure Innovations celebrated the successful completion of
supported internships for nine young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
(SEND). A graduation event recognised their achievements, with several already
securing paid employment across the airport site with MAG and airport partners and more job
offers are expected in the coming weeks.

The programme, which has been running for more than eleven years, combines workplace
experience with classroom learning to help young people develop the skills and confidence
needed for sustainable employment. Since its launch, the initiative has supported more than 60
young people into paid roles, demonstrating inclusive employment and social mobility.
Supporting young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) remained a
key focus throughout the quarter. In June, Manchester Airports Group hosted a parliamentary
reception bringing together representatives from Government, industry and education to
showcase the impact of employer-led skills programmes in creating pathways into employment.
supported more than 52,000 jobseekers since 2020, including over 350 NEET young people in
the last year alone.

The reception demonstrated how programmes such as the Airport Academy, AeroZone,
Manchester Airport Skills Hub and Stansted Airport College provide clear routes into
employment, helping young people develop the skills, confidence and experience needed to
enter the workforce. Attendees also heard directly from individuals who have progressed from
educational engagement activities into employment within the aviation sector.

Locally, we continued to strengthen support for NEET young people through targeted outreach
and careers engagement activities. During the quarter, the team attended three NEET-specific
events organised by the Department for Work and Pensions and the Building Futures in Bury
North Jobs Fair, hosted by James Daly MP, where we engaged with more than 500 young people
and adults. These events provided advice, guidance and information on employment
opportunities, training programmes and Airport Academy courses, helping participants better
understand the pathways available into aviation careers. Colleague volunteers from across the
business also attended more than 11 school careers fairs, engaging with 1,858 young people.
Work experience also played an important role in supporting future employability. Between April
and June, colleagues from across the business hosted 27 young people on work experience
placements, providing valuable exposure to the workplace, developing confidence and
enhancing awareness of career opportunities within the aviation sector.

Employment
Between April and June, the Airport Academy team attended 17 local jobs fairs and careers
events across Greater Manchester, including Manchester city centre, Wythenshawe, Stockport,
Hulme, Hyde, Cheetham Hill, Oldham, Winsford, Rochdale and Bury. The team promoted the
NCFE Level 1 Exploring the Aviation Industry pre-employability course and the career pathways
it supports.
Over the quarter, 103 people completed the NCFE course, with 895 individuals supported overall
through Airport Academy activities and outreach. Recruitment activity remains ongoing;
however, 33 participants have already secured employment following completion of the course.
Manchester Airport Skills HubThe Manchester Airport Skills Hub also continues to support
education and employment pathways. In April, the Unlocking Talent at Manchester Airport
webinar brought together employers and partners to share updates on apprenticeship reforms,
funding opportunities and workforce planning support.
In June, we celebrated the successful completion of the Skills Hub's inaugural upskilling
programme, Leading with Confidence in Aviation, with a graduation event hosted at Olympic
House. The programme brought together aspiring and first-line leaders from a range of airport
employers, including MAG, DHL, Swissport, ABM and HMSHost, to develop leadership skills and
strengthen cross-organisational collaboration. Chris Woodroofe, Managing Director of
Manchester Airport, hosted the graduation event and presented certificates to participants.
We saw strong outcomes, with 100% of participants reporting increased confidence and positive
changes in their leadership approach, supported by consistently positive feedback from line
managers. Following its success, the programme will be expanded, with further cohorts planned
career progression across the airport campus.

We are also proud that Manchester Airport's long-standing partnership with Trafford & Stockport
College Group received significant external recognition this quarter. The Manchester Airport
Skills Hub was awarded the Business Engagement Award at the prestigious Educate North
Awards, recognising its innovative employer-led approach to developing aviation skills, creating
employment opportunities and supporting workforce resilience.
Further recognition followed at the Trafford & Stockport College Group Partnerships in
Excellence, Apprenticeship and Skills Awards, where Manchester Airports Group was named
Overall Partner of the Year. The award celebrated a 14-year partnership encompassing the
Manchester Airport Skills Hub, Airport Academy and MAG apprenticeship programmes. The
evening also recognised the achievements of MAG apprentices, with Kyle Rowe receiving the
STEM Apprentice of the Year (Engineering) award and Adam Doyle being named Workplace
Rising Star (Airfield Operations). These successes highlight the positive impact of our investment
in skills development, apprenticeships and workforce development across the airport
community.

10. FUTURE AIRSPACE

Wider Airspace Modernisation update
As previously reported, several consultations were undertaken and accompanying policy
documents were published in late 2025 and early 2026, to support the development of the UK
Airspace Design Service (UKADS). Updates to these consultations, along with the details of other
relevant consultations that have taken place since, are outlined below.
CAP3158 – CAA Consultation on draft guidance and requirements for UKADS and CAP3159 – CAA Consultation on draft requirements and guidance for UKACS. Consultation response
documents and guidance documents were published in March 2026, details below.
o CAP3161: Outcome of the consultation on draft guidance for the UK Airspace Design and
Coordination Services
o CAP3162 : Outcome of the consultation on draft requirements for the UK Airspace
Coordination Service (UKACS) and associated guidance
o CAP3219: Guidance for the UK Airspace Design and Coordination Services
o CAP3220: Requirements for the UK Airspace Coordination Service and associated
guidance.
Engagement on Progressive Aerodrome Airspace Design Guidance we shared our thoughts
on this consultation in mid-May 2026.
Modernising Midlands Airspace (ACP-2025-013) NATS Enroute (NERL) have progressed to
Stage 3 of their proposal to make changes to the air routes (way above 7,000ft). The proposals
are designed to reduce congestion to improve the flow of traffic north/south, affording
reductions in aircraft noise and emissions beneficial to all. Public consultation is expected later
in 2026.
The North West Transit Corridor (NWTC) was introduced on 20th February 2025; a corridor
designed to facilitate traffic on a North-South axis between Manchester and Liverpool John
Lennon Airports. The NWTC replaced the previous Manchester Low-Level Route with a wider
(east towards Manchester Airport), higher (ceiling increased from 1,300ft to 15,00ft), Class G
airspace (from Class D) passage. In May/June the CAA conducted a Post-Implementation
Review (PIR) on the change. We confirmed that there have been no issues with the NWTC. We
emphasised that this was unusual and provided an indicator of how welcome and successful
the change has been. We confirmed that MAG Manchester Airport had no appetite for further
changes.
Details of all UKADS related consultations, supporting documents and policy papers are available
on the UKADS webpages on the CAA website and CAA Airspace change portal.

The Manchester Airport Future Airspace project (ACP-2019-23)
As members will recall, in the Manchester Terminal Manoeuvring Area (TMA) there are Airspace
Change Processes underway (between ground and 7,000ft) at East Midlands (EMA), Manchester
(MAN), Liverpool John Lennon (LPL), and Leeds Bradford Airports (LBA). NATS En Route Ltd
(NERL) are undertaking works above 7,000ft.

Stage 3 requires sponsors within the TMA cluster to progress through the gateway and undertake
consultation in a coordinated manner. MAN, LPL, EMA and NERL all completed Stage 2 in 2023.
Following a series of delays and gateway failures that affected the w
are pleased to confirm that LBA successfully passed its Stage 2 gateway in February this year.
With all cluster sponsors now through to Stage 3, work is advancing on the collaborative activities
needed to move towards the Stage 3 Gateway. In mid-May, the first collaborative consultation
meeting for cluster sponsors took place, marking the start of coordinated planning for the
consultation elements required under CAP1616. This builds on the technical design and
programme collaboration that is already well established and represents a positive step forward
tment to progressing to the Gateway and

subsequent consultation.
Following formal agreement of the Stage 3 programme with all sponsors and the CAA, we will
publish details of the indicative timeline for the Stage 3 Gateway and consultation.
Projects to remove reliance on the MCT DVOR
As previously reported, the existing departure and arrival procedures are dependent upon
national assets (provided by NATS En Route Ltd) scheduled to be removed from service in 2027.
The Manchester Airport Future Airspace project (ACP-2019-23) will provide the long-term
solution, entirely replacing dependency on ground based navigational aids with satellite
navigation. Two projects will ‘bridge the gap between removal of the ground based navigational
aids and the delivery of ACP-2019-23:
ACP-2024-002 Contingency RNP approaches for Runway 23R, Runway 05L & Runway 05R.
ACP-2024-007 RNAV Substitution of Eligible Conventional Procedures.
As many in the community will be aware, most aircraft arriving at Manchester Airport are given - weather capability allowing many aircraft to land with little visual reference to the ground.
Periodic maintenance work and grass cutting/other airfield maintenance tasks (blocking the
safety net and strong resilience for airport operations. The VOR/DME approaches were used as
approaches were not available. The CAA approved ACP-2024-002; ‘Required Navigation
in February.
These procedures are now published in the active UK Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP)
and will become the contingency approaches upon removal of the VOR/DME approaches on
Thursday 6th August 2026.
The CAA have now also approved ACP-2024-007. In line with CAP1781; all 20 Standard
Instrument Departures (SIDs) and three Initial Approach Procedures will be RNAV Substituted on
Thursday 6th August 2026. The RNAV substituted procedures are now published in the AIRAC
08/2026 AIP. Through delivery of ACP-2024-002 and ACP-2024-007 dependency on the
Manchester (MCT)/TRENT (TNT) Doppler Very High Frequency Ranges (DVORs) and the
Manchester (MCT) Distance Measuring Equipment will be removed. Removal of these dependencies will improve the resilience of our operation for the benefit of our airlines,
passengers and the communities that neighbour our site.

11. MANCHESTER AIRPORT IN THE NEWS
The news agenda for much of the second quarter of 2026 was defined by the conflict in the
Middle East and its impact on aviation. We saw this play out in the form of airlines cancelling
flights – particularly Gulf carriers but also the likes of IndiGo – as well as changes in customer's
booking habits. Operations at Manchester Airport itself were not impacted by the conflict but the
Press Office team did see media interest in speaking to people returning to Manchester from the
Persian Gulf and facilitated these requests where feasible and appropriate.
We took a more cautious approach to our route network promotion in light of the uncertainty and
focused on concrete milestones such as route launches and anniversaries, and there were
several of these to mark over the three months in question. We announced, among other things;
- A series of airline anniversaries at Manchester including Air France (80 years), SAS
Scandinavian (60 years), Singapore Airlines (40 years), Virgin Atlantic (30 years),
Icelandair (20 years), Hainan Airlines (10 years) - a round-up of new routes announced for this summer - the quadrupling of Bangkok flights with Norse - the 80th anniversary of Air France's first flight from Manchester - Ryanair's launch of flights to Rimini Airport in Italy

In the CSR space, in April we announced the graduation of the first cohort of apprentices on our
Level 3 Aviation Ground Specialist course, run in partnership with Trafford & Stockport College
Group. We followed this up in June by marking the graduation of a group of colleagues from a leadership course offered by TSCG through the airport Skill's Hub. This was complemented by press releases marking another £30,000 of donations from our Community Trust Fund, and the airport's sponsorship of Wilmslow Pride in June.

In MANTP news, we announced the name and planned opening schedule for T2's new
Wetherspoon, and marked the official unveiling of our new chandelier artwork.
There were relatively few reactive incidents, but one that did attract substantial interest was the
police incident at the Terminal 2 forecourt on 27 May. The media and social media teams shared
regular updates with passengers through our social media channels throughout, with an
emphasis on passenger guidance rather than the incident itself, given the sensitivity. Comment
on the incident and its management was deferred to GMP. This allowed us to ensure the reporting
focused on the messages we wanted to convey to passengers around where to drop-off and
what to expect while the incident was ongoing.
Looking ahead, as we move into the peak summer season over Q3 2026, we will dial up our
messaging around passenger preparation, from service guides to security rules. The return of
BBC Radio Manchester's annual live summer show on 22nd July will be a big opportunity to
showcase the high-quality experience passengers can expect this summer.

Separate from the above presentaion, a question was raised with regards to the use of Pier C and Chris Woodroofe advised it was anticipated that the pier would be demolised within the next 5-10 years.

 

[marni1971]

Thanks for that Scottie. Shame they’re still considering the TP as finished.