Manchester Airports Group (MAG) which owns East Midlands Airport, today reported a positive set of annual results, as it continues with transformational investment programmes across its airports.
MAG served more than 61m passengers, exceeding pre-pandemic levels
· The UK’s largest group of airports posted record revenues of £1.2bn over the year
· MAG is investing £2bn in its airports over the next five years, expanding capacity and improving customer service
· Nine out of ten of passengers in the first six months of 2024 rated their experience as good, very good or excellent
MAG, which owns and operates Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands Airport, served 61.3m passengers in the year to 31 March 2024, exceeding passenger levels recorded in 2019-20 for the first time.
In the period 1 April 2023 – 31 March 2024, the Group posted revenues of £1.2bn and an Adjusted EBITDA of £507m, up 23% year-on-year. Operating profit stood at £240.1m after accounting for one-offs, up from £28.6m in 2022-23.
This performance provides strong foundations for MAG to press ahead, in partnership with its airlines, on an ambitious programme of capital expenditure that will see it invest around £2bn in its airports over the next five years.
That investment will help drive growth and prosperity in the regions the Group serves, by creating jobs and stimulating international trade in high-value sectors.
As the UK prepares to elect a new government, CEO Ken O’Toole said MAG was uniquely placed to support the successful delivery of a new Industrial Strategy aimed at creating a balanced and globally-competitive economy.
Mr O’Toole, who is presenting his first full set of annual results as CEO, said: “I am pleased to announce these positive results for 2023-24, which demonstrate the vital role our airports play in connecting people and businesses to the world.
“Our growing route networks are providing access to more than 200 destinations, and we are committed to giving passengers the best possible choice to help them shape their journeys to suit their needs.
“I am proud of the high levels of customer service we have been able to provide across this reporting period and thank all of our colleagues and partners for delivering that.
“MAG has also continued to play a leading role in supporting the transition to net zero carbon aviation by 2050, and that will continue in earnest in the year ahead.
“As an island trading nation, we know that aviation has a critical role to play in the UK’s economic future. Aviation creates high quality jobs and enables global trade, investment and tourism, and we know that the UK’s economic sectors that will drive the most growth in the years ahead rely on global connectivity more than others.
“As the UK elects a new government, we look forward to working with them on an industrial strategy for the country that is underpinned by the sustainable growth of aviation.”
Growing businesses in the UK and internationally
MAG’s airports delivered strong passenger growth over the year. London Stansted became the first major UK airport to surpass pre-pandemic traffic levels in July 2023, and has since been operating with record passenger numbers month-on-month. Across 2023-24, London Stansted served 28.5m passengers, up 12% year-on-year and equal to 106% of traffic served in 2019-20.
Manchester Airport served 28.8m passengers across the year, up 14% on last year, and equivalent to 102% of traffic in 2019-20. East Midlands Airport served 4.0m passengers, up 21% year-on-year and 89% of pre-pandemic traffic.
Across the reporting year, route networks at all three of MAG’s airports continued to grow.
Low cost short-haul capacity increased across the Group, with Ryanair, Jet2.com, easyJet and TUI all adding to their route networks, alongside the return of British Airways to London Stansted operating popular destinations across Europe.
Long-haul connectivity also continued to recover. At Manchester Airport, Virgin Atlantic restored its direct route to Las Vegas – once again becoming the only airport outside of London to offer direct flights to America’s West Coast.
On 1 July 2024, the airport launched a new service to Shanghai with Juneyao Air, providing the UK’s first direct connection outside London to China’s financial capital. London Stansted also expanded its reach to the Middle East earlier in the year, launching a new four times weekly service to Amman with Royal Jordanian.
MAG’s global airport services business CAVU has also seen its international reach continue to grow. CAVU, which delivers digital and physical solutions to enhance the end-to-end passenger journey, now has a presence in more than 300 airports across 34 countries, and operates 26 airport lounges across the UK and US – including at all three of MAG’s airports and Bristol Airport.
Strong customer experience
All three of MAG’s airports delivered a strong customer experience throughout the year, with 96% of passengers passing through security in 15 minutes or less across the peak summer months of June, July and August 2023. New surveys carried out in the first six months of 2024 showed that nine out of ten passengers rated their experience in MAG airports as good, very good or excellent.*
MAG continues to make good progress on its £1.3bn Manchester Airport Transformation Programme, which is modernising and more than doubling the size of Terminal 2 to significantly enhance the experience for passengers.
Passenger feedback has been very positive for the new facilities that have already opened, and it was confirmed in November 2023 that the new terminal had been awarded prestigious Prix Versailles recognition for its architectural and design quality. The full transformation will be complete in 2025.
MAG secured planning permission in October 2023 to extend London Stansted’s terminal. The programme will transform the passenger experience and provide capacity to accommodate growth at the airport towards its agreed limit of 43m passengers per year.
Analysis by Optimal Economics has shown that the scheme will create 5,000 more jobs and double the airport’s GVA to £2bn per year.
The Group is also investing £120m in a range of improvement projects at East Midlands Airport.
Sustainable future
MAG also reported positive progress on its commitment to reaching net zero carbon in its own operations by 2038, and to supporting the wider industry’s efforts to reach net zero by 2050, including recognition as one of the Financial Times’ European Climate Leaders for the third year in a row and retaining its five-star GRESB ESG rating.
In March 2024, MAG published industry-leading research with transport sustainability experts ICF, which found that using the 27m tonnes of annual UK household waste to make Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) would be at least five times better for the environment than burning the waste to generate electricity.
The research concluded that if all the waste intended for incineration were used to make SAF, the carbon saving would be equivalent to the emissions of at least 46 million people flying from London to Madrid every year.
Through this research and its wider industry partnerships, MAG is working with the UK Government on how to support the creation of a thriving UK SAF industry with policies such as a revenue certainty mechanism to give price confidence to SAF producers, and improvements to the national waste hierarchy.
East Midlands Airport also announced in September 2023 a new partnership with the UK’s largest hydrogen cluster, ‘East Midlands Hydrogen’, which will include a new 100% hydrogen pipeline that would help to meet the airport’s projected demand of liquid hydrogen by 2050.
Linking together MAG’s commitment to aviation decarbonisation and providing grass-roots education opportunities to local communities, in October 2023 the Group launched its Jet Zero Curriculum at its MAG Connect Aerozones.
The launch of the scheme delivered on one of the five pledges the Group made in support of the Government’s Jet Zero Strategy in 2022. The curriculum will educate thousands of young people about SAF, its production, and the role it will play in aviation decarbonisation using an interactive game format.
Across the reporting period more than 5,500 pupils visited MAG’s Aerozones, which inspire school-aged children about future careers in the aviation industry.
The Group also continues to invest in its local communities through Community Trust Funds, which this year contributed more than £750,000 to local charitable organisations and community groups.
