More than half a million people flew through East Midlands Airport last month, choosing it as the easy way to get away for their summer holidays.
Latest figures show that 509,590 people travelled through the airport – located in the heart of England – in July.
That is a far cry from the airport’s first summer 60 years ago, when it is estimated just 10,000 people a month flew from the newly-opened terminal to a small handful of destinations.
The airport celebrated its diamond anniversary last month with a series of fun days at the East Midlands Aeropark and unveiling a plaque to mark the completion of improvements to the security hall.
Six decades on and around 70 destinations can now be reached from the airport, with the most popular holiday spots including Alicante, Tenerife, Mallorca, Malaga, Lanzarote, Corfu, Paphos, Antalya and Kefalonia.
This summer TUI added Boa Vista in the Cape Verde islands and Burgas in Bulgaria to its East Midlands routes while Jet2 added extra flights to Corfu. City break options include Rome, Dubrovnik, Pisa, Verona, Paris, Berlin, Budapest, Krakow, and closer to home, Belfast, Dublin, Jersey and Guernsey.
• Top 3 summer getaway destinations from East Midlands Airport
As well as the security hall transformation, East Midlands’ anniversary year has seen other improvements including new and refurbished bars, restaurants and Escape Lounge, upgraded toilet and baby changing facilities and a new barrierless system in its Rapid Drop Off area, all part of a £120m investment programme.
The airport is gearing up for one of its busiest days this summer, on Friday 22 August, when just under 18,000 people will use it ahead of the bank holiday weekend.
East Midlands Airport’s Managing Director Steve Griffiths said: “We’re very pleased to welcome so many people to the airport this summer and for them to benefit from the many improvements we’ve carried out this year.
“It’s amazing to think about the airport’s humble beginnings 60 years ago when a fraction of the number of people travelled through it and to far fewer places. But one constant that prevails to this day is that we’re a friendly airport where people can relax and enjoy the start to their holidays. That’s why I’m sure we’ll continue to go from strength to strength.”
