Stansted transformation continues following record breaking May
London Stansted enjoyed another record breaking month as the airport welcomed over 2.1 million passengers in May 2016, with its transformation programme increasing efficiencies ahead of the summer getaway. Passenger numbers were up 4.6% on 2015 during the busiest May on record at the airport. Load factors - the average number of seats occupied on each flight – also hit a new all-time high for the month of May at 87.1%.
In the 12 months ending May 2016, the total number of passengers using Stansted grew to over 23.3 million, up 9.3% and an increase of two million passengers over the previous year.
Cargo volumes also recorded a significant increase in the month, up 9.2% over May 2015. The annual total now stands at over 247,000 tonnes, an increase of 6.2% over the last year and the highest annual total since 2005.
Andrew Cowan, Stansted’s CEO, said: “I’m pleased to once again report very positive passenger growth at Stansted as we recorded our busiest ever May at the airport, driven by all-time high load factors for the month and despite the continuing disruption of air traffic control strikes in France.
“Passenger numbers were also boosted by the start of the first B787 Dreamliner flights by Thomson to the USA and Mexico, the launch of British Airways sell-out first flights to Spain and Portugal plus increased frequency on key Ryanair routes.
“To help improve efficiency, provide more choice and increase capacity to keep up with forecast growth in the coming years, work is underway on a series of new projects to enhance the passenger experience as we continue to invest in new facilities and services to make Stansted the airport of choice for the region.”
London Stansted’s transformation programme is now entering its latest phase as a number of new multi-million pound projects to enhance customer service and security at the airport get underway, ahead of the main summer getaway.
The new developments will help build short and medium term operational capacity at the airport to keep pace with increasing passenger demand. The projects include changes to the layout and operation of the security search area, a significant increase in the number of seats available in the main departure lounge.
In addition, 2,500 new ‘Meet and Greet’ spaces are being created along with 1,000 more short stay car parking spaces available by the end of July.
To help increase passenger throughput at security screening and ensure the airport keeps pace with security compliance requirements, work has begun to introduce Central Image Processing (CIP). This involves relocating the hand baggage x-ray review process to a dedicated central location away from the other security related activity in the main search area.
This £5 million investment will see the new technology applied to 13 of the airport’s 22 security lanes with three lane upgrades complete by mid-July in a phased introduction to limit any disruption to normal operations. The security search area entrance will also be subject to a redesign due to be completed by late autumn.
Karen Smart, Stansted’s Customer Service and Security Director said: “Stansted is already the busiest single terminal airport in the UK serving over 23 million passengers each year, and with passenger numbers forecast to grow rapidly in the years ahead, it’s vital we invest in new technology and services to ensure we keep pace with increasing demand while at the same time improving the customer experience at the airport.
“The investments we are making are a clear demonstration of our commitment to driving service standards upwards by utilising the best technology available to increase operational efficiency and delivering the type and scale of facilities passengers expect at a major international airport.”