Busy Easter ahead for London Stansted Airport

London Stansted is gearing up for a bumper Easter getaway, with around 1.5 million passengers expected to pass through the terminal over the school holiday period.

Between March 28 and April 12, up to 760,000 passengers will be flying out of the airport, with another 740,000 due to arrive, as families across the region head off for some spring sunshine, city breaks or late-season skiing in the Alps.

Popular destinations include the hotspots of Spain, Italy and Portugal, while city breaks to Rome, Barcelona, Dublin and Budapest are also proving popular.

Over the Easter weekend alone, passenger numbers are expected to top 400,000, with Good Friday predicted to be the busiest day for departures.

This year’s getaway marks the first Easter with the airport’s newly enlarged security hall fully operational. The upgraded facility features next-generation scanners, so passengers no longer need to remove liquids or large electronics from their bags.

Work is still ongoing on a new and improved security entrance portal, with more boarding card scanners to be added later this year to further speed up entry and enhance the passengers experience.

The improvements form part of Stansted’s wider transformation programme, which passengers will notice throughout the terminal. Construction hoardings will remain in some areas as works continue, but several major upgrades have already been delivered.

These include the opening of the new domestic Arrivals building, a refurbishment of the Satellite Two gate area including new flooring and seating, and significant improvements to the airport’s extensive baggage system behind the scenes.

Jonathan Fowler, London Stansted’s chief operating officer, commented: “Easter is always a very busy time for all the teams working at London Stansted, and we’re pleased to be welcoming so many passengers as they head off on their holidays. Our teams will be working hard to make sure everyone gets a smooth start to their trip, especially with our new, expanded security hall and next generation scanners now in use.

“Passengers will still see some hoardings around the terminal as we continue our transformation programme, but these improvements are all part of our vision to create a more modern, spacious and efficient airport that makes every step of travel easier and more comfortable, while at the same time offering our passengers even more choice and more possibilities when using London Stansted.”