Manchester Airport exceeds 2 million passenger milestone in record breaking February

Manchester Airport served more than 2 million passengers in February for the first time thanks to a surge in half-term getaways.

More than 800,000 of the month’s passengers travelled during the week-long school holiday alone, with sunnier destinations such as Alicante, Tenerife and Dubai among the most popular.

The 2,012,134 passengers recorded in February is 5.9% up on last year – the previous best February on record.

The successful month sets the scene for what is set be another record-breaking year for Manchester Airport that will be boosted further by the launch of a direct route to India later this year. IndiGo, the country’s biggest airline, will provide the North’s only direct flight to India from Manchester Airport. With more than 500,000 people with Indian heritage living within two hours’ drive of Manchester Airport, it is likely to be popular for those visiting family, as well as catalysing trade and investment between the North and world’s fastest growing economy.

February also saw Manchester Airport delivering consistent good service to passengers, with 98% of passengers waiting less than 15 minutes to get to security – and over three quarters getting to security in under five minutes.

Manchester Airport Managing Director Chris Woodroofe said:

“Here at Manchester Airport, we are proud to connect the North to the world – so delivering a great service for our passengers during school holidays is really important to us.

“We’ve just recorded our busiest February on record – more than 2m passengers – and that was driven by people putting their faith in us during half-term.

“And I’m happy to say that we delivered. Most of our passengers waited less than five minutes to get to security – that’s the kind of seamless experience we know families really value and helps them start their holidays at the airport.

“It’s set to be an exciting year. We’re looking forward to the completion of our £1.3bn transformation programme and the full opening of our brand-new, world-class Terminal 2, which will become the airport’s main terminal and serve around 70% of our passengers.

“On top of that we’re continuing to add the new routes that people in the region want. Our new partnership with IndiGo means we’re the only Northern airport with a direct connection to India.

“We already serve more than 200 different destinations with 50 airlines, but India is a fantastic addition. Not only is it an incredible place to visit and the world’s fastest growing economy, but it’s a great connection for the half a million people of Indian heritage who live within two hours of the airport.

“I’m looking forward to continuing to deliver for our passengers over the rest of 2025 and beyond.”