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Manchester Airport announces closure of Terminal 1 after £440m Terminal 2 expansion

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It may have been delayed by the pandemic, but the end is in sight for the £1.3 billion transformation of Terminal 2 at Manchester Airport.

This morning, the airport has announced that it is progressing with the final phase of rebuilding in Terminal 2. This will allow Terminal 1 to be closed upon completion in Summer 2025.

Building work began on the new look Terminal 2 in 2017, with the first phase – including a new pier – opening in April 2019, alongside a new multi-storey car park.

Manchester Airport Terminal 2 final phase expansion

The new-look Terminal 2 finally opened in July 2021, becoming the largest terminal at the airport.

Enabling work has already begun for the final phase of work.

What will happen in the final phase of work?

Costed at £440 million, the project will:

“transform the passenger experience at the UK’s third largest airport, with new spacious facilities, state-of-the-art technology and equipment, and an exciting array of shops, bars, restaurants and airport lounges.”

In particular, the work will see:

  • Doubling the size of the existing departure lounge, with a wider selection of shops and food and drink outlets
  • The construction of an additional security hall, fitted with next-generation security scanners.
Manchester Airport Terminal 2 final phase expansion
  • A new pier, matching the look and feel of the first pier that opened in 2019
  • A new dual taxiway system to improve airfield efficiency, with flexible aircraft stand
  • More than doubling the terminal’s hold baggage capacity to over 5,000 bags per hour, with two new teardrop check in islands

Upon completion in 2025, around 80% of all passengers will use the expanded Terminal 2. Terminal 1 will close, although as it will be 63 years old by that point, it is probably about time.

Charlie Cornish, CEO of Manchester Airports Group, said in a statement:

“Manchester Airport is a key economic asset for the North, and this investment will maximise the contribution it makes to creating a balanced and globally competitive UK economy.

“Our £1.3bn transformation programme demonstrates our long-term commitment to providing a great airport experience for passengers who travel through Manchester. I’m delighted to be announcing the go-ahead for the final phase, which will open in 2025, connecting the people and businesses of the North to dozens more global destinations, and creating jobs and stimulating increased levels of trade and tourism.”

Category

General

Comments (91)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Novice says:
    25 Jan25 January 22:44

    I absolutely hate the new design. I was looking forward to my first flight out after covid cancellation and was excited at the prospect of having a decent experience. But it was wishful thinking.

    Confusing, generic, soulless and white hell.

  • Paul says:
    26 Jan26 January 06:33

    So finally the world’s worst airport is doing something. The airport is and looks an absolute disgrace and is an embarrassment. It couldn’t come soon enough. I’m a Gold BA and SkyTeam member and have to use the MAN-LHR route a lot and I arrive to and from there by train (and appallingly unreliable service mostly by Northern Railways).

    Let’s hope they do what they say.

    • No Longer Entitled says:
      26 Jan26 January 08:43

      Finally doing something? As a frequent traveler I’m surprised you haven’t noticed the near £1bn spent already alongside the construction work that has been ongoing for years.

      Good news for you though, as a frequent BA flyer you will be aware that you use Terminal 3 and as such can expect no change.

    • Ruralite says:
      26 Jan26 January 09:59

      They also need to get rid of the appallingly bad and unreliable TP Express for those of us who travel east to west and vice versa. For months now using them to get to Manchester airport (or anywhere else across the Northern half of the country for that matter) has not been worth the risk of missing your flight/connection/meeting. We have to put up with appalling infrastructure, yet walking the dog the other day I found Anglian water putting in a new main that will transfer water from N. Lincs to Colchester where they, apparently, need it more. More like levelling DOWN – to the South!

    • Rob says:
      26 Jan26 January 15:09

      Currently the worst thing is lack of direct access from the station to T3 as the walkway ends at T1 and you have to go a mazy route to access T3. As a BA frequent flyer myself it is extremely disappointing that London-centric BA has virtually given up on MAN with only its MAN-LHR route left.

      • No Longer Entitled says:
        26 Jan26 January 16:12

        Hopefully when everything is done and dusted and the construction storage facilities are returned to the airport they will improve the pedestrian passenger connectivity between the terminals and station.

      • NorthernLass says:
        26 Jan26 January 18:41

        And that’s not even reliable – many days there are only 5 services and none between 11am and 4pm so if you’re connecting to an afternoon flight and the MAN-LHR is cancelled you are basically stuffed.

  • Neil says:
    26 Jan26 January 07:25

    Living in Liverpool I use Liverpool airport a lot. In the past 4 months I’ve used MAN T2,T1 and T3. All were disappointing. I particularly hated having to spend £6 on my friend picking me up. Having used LHR for the first time in my life this month we went with BA through T5. The shops were more suited to the high end traveller. Not everyone wants to buy a Dior bag or a coat from Harrods. A better mix would have been good. The security and border set ups coming back to change to the MAN flight were horrendous!! LPL might be small pickings compared to the others but it definitely has its house in order.

    • RussellH says:
      26 Jan26 January 08:48

      On the few occasions that I use an airport, I always think of my grandmother who said that air travel felt like a parcel being posted, rather than a human being travelling to somewhere they wanted to go.

      The only human airports are the ones with hardly any flights – if someone could design a larger one so that it still felt like that….

      • Bagoly says:
        26 Jan26 January 14:40

        The modern equivalent (was it Rob who came up with it) is “self-loading cargo”.

  • Super Secret Stuff says:
    26 Jan26 January 09:25

    I used T1 yesterday, it was cramped but functional just about. Can’t imagine what it’s like in peak summer!

  • Matarredondaaa says:
    26 Jan26 January 09:35

    MAG seem to dislike domestic passengers as Stansted is now a disgrace with the tiniest of waiting areas and absolutely no facilities.

  • Brian Pickles says:
    26 Jan26 January 09:43

    I absolutely agree that MAN isn’t a pleasant experience currently, but some of the comments on here are approaching Hyacinth Bucket levels of snobbery and derision. Remarks about the terminal resembling a council leisure centre and recoiling in horror at the thought of a branch of JD Sports isn’t really a good look for a group consisting mainly of very privileged status card holders. The airport has to cater for a broad range of clientele and they clearly realise they have an issue with the layout and facilities in the terminals as they’re spending a lot of money trying to address it. Perhaps give them a chance to sort it out and see what the result is before you decide it’s something to look down your nose at.

    • Scott says:
      26 Jan26 January 19:07

      Wasn’t there a JD sports or similar next door to Galleries North in T5?

  • Stagger Lee says:
    26 Jan26 January 10:21

    Another Terminal 2 annoyance. No phone signal at all in the duty free which meant I couldn’t get my Red app up to give me 10% off the bottle of Ardbeg I wanted. I know I could have gone to the lounge, loaded it up on wi fi and gone back but i really shouldn’t have had too.

  • Mikeact says:
    26 Jan26 January 12:11

    You want to think yourselves lucky ….
    One day, they’ll have a sign up at Gatwick,
    “We regret, there are no building works going on….please try later.”

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