Anna Jamesonand
Laura O’Neill,North West
A large section of Manchester Airport’s Terminal 1 has closed after more than 60 years.
It was opened by Prince Philip in 1962 and entered its final phase of closure last week.
The final airlines to move across began their operations from Terminal 2 this week.
However, passengers are concerned it will not be able to accommodate the increase in traffic.
Which airlines are still flying out of Terminal 1?
The final airlines began their operations from Terminal 2 this week, which means 75% of the airports passengers will fly from there.
Ryanair is now the only carrier that will operate from a hybrid of Terminal 1 and 3 until the full closure of Terminal 1 early next year, when they will all fly out of Terminal 3.
The airport said passengers flying with Ryanair should follow the signs for Ryanair departures, which will take them, in the short term, to Terminal 1, departures A.
This will become the entrance to Terminal 3 in a few weeks when the signage has been fully changed.
Will Terminal 2 be able to handle the increase in traffic?
The airport said Terminal 2 had undergone a 10-year, £1.3bn transformation – which has more than doubled its size.
An extension to the terminal opened in 2021, and the airport was now in the final stages of overhauling the original Terminal 2.
“We have heavily invested in not just the passenger experience but the terminal itself,” Jennifer Byrne-Smith, director of customer operations at Manchester Airport, said.
“We’ve got a new security hall over there, so we now have two security halls. It has a huge departure lounge with plenty of new shops and restaurants.
“We can grow our capacity now at the airport, we do about 31m passengers, by 2030 we’re hoping to grow to over 40m passengers.”
How will parking be affected?
Some passengers are concerned it will not be able to accommodate the increase in traffic.
“It’s a shame that they are closing it, they think it’s not going to get congested – of course it’s going to get congested,” one traveller told North West Tonight.
“How long is it going to take? There’s so many people coming to Manchester, I think they should have left it open,” another said.
Ms Byrne-Smith said a number of changes had already been made to the car park and road networks around the airport to accommodate the increased traffic.
“Considering we’re going to get busier people need more parking and better routes in and out of the airport.
“The road networks are all considered as part of the enhancements to the terminal, we are absolutely confident that the capacity to drop off – whether that’s in a taxi or a car – is prepared for the traffic that will be going through terminal two.
“That is nothing that anyone needs to worry about, we have invested in the terminal facility and the road network as well.”
What about passengers with bookings in Terminal 1?
The airport said passengers should have been contacted by their airline “weeks in advance” to advise them that their terminal, and associated bookings, had changed.
What can passengers expect at Terminal 3?
The airport said it would be “carving off” a bit of Terminal 1 to create more space in Terminal 3.
Ms Byrne-Smith said Ryanair customers could expect to see more out of that terminal in the coming months, including a new bar and restaurant.
“It’s an older building and we recognise that needs some investment as well.
“Now that we have moved 75% of traffic to Terminal 2, and we’re almost done, we’re heading back to Terminal 3 to spend some money over there, to make the passenger experience that bit better.”