MAG says days of 'airport chaos' over after massive recruitment drive

MAG has now taken on more than 2,000 new recruits to shore up its operational resilience, with service levels across the group – which comprises Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands airports – now back to normal.

The group on Wednesday (7 December) revealed it returned to profit over the summer in the six months to 30 September as passenger numbers rebounded to 84% of pre-Covid levels.

It posted a half-year operating profit of £22.8 million, up from a loss of £75.7 million during the same period a year earlier, while revenues increased by £158.7 million to £538.8 million.

In total, 30.5 million passengers passed through MAG’s three airports during the first half of the year. This compares with 6.6 million last summer. MAG said the uptick had been driven by the resumption of the "vast majority" of its pre-pandemic route network, with short-haul traffic – at times – exceeding 2019 levels.

Long-haul recovery, meanwhile, has been led by direct routes to North America and the Middle East, said MAG, with the group insisting its decision not to impose capacity restrictions – like Heathrow did – allowed carriers to meet resurgent summer demand.