Stansted sets new passenger record

The monthly total was boosted by additional flights to Madrid and Baku as thousands of fans jetted off to both the Champions League and Europa League finals. A number of large aircraft not usually seen at the airport including the A380, Boeing 747s and Airbus A340s, helped 31st May become the busiest ever day in May and the 15th busiest on record at Stansted with 97, 349 passing through the terminal.

The month also saw many families heading off on half-term holidays. Countries recording the highest growth compared to last year were Turkey (26.6%), Netherlands (19.7%) and Portugal (13.9%).

Stansted Airport CEO, Ken O’Toole (above), said: “May was another very busy month at London Stansted - the busiest May on record – as we welcomed over 2.57 million passengers to the airport. In addition to the rush of families heading off for the half-term holidays, the airport also played host to thousands of football fans departing to the two major football finals in Baku and Madrid.

“Our priority as an airport is to always offer great service and a safe and reliable flight operation. Working together with partners from across the airport, we successfully managed this complex and challenging period through excellent coordination and cooperation, ensuring the operation went as smoothly as possible and keeping any disruption to our airlines and passengers to a minimum.

“As we head into the main summer season, the focus of the whole team at London Stansted is to continue delivering the best airport experience.

“To help us achieve this aim, we’re taking on more security and customer service staff as well as  completing a number of projects associated with our transformation programme, including opening a new multi-storey car park and eight extra aircraft stands plus additional check-in desks and upgraded hold baggage system.”