East Midlands Airport continued to go from strength to strength in its anniversary year
The year that East Midlands Airport marked its 60th anniversary saw it bolster its position as the UK’s leading express cargo airport and improve its passenger operations.
The newly released Annual Report of MAG (Manchester Airports Group), East Midlands Airport’s parent company, shows that across all three of its airports, including Manchester and Stansted, it handled record numbers of passengers at 66m in 2025, up 1.9% year-on-year.
East Midlands’ passenger operation was in line with the previous year, serving 4m passengers, with based airlines Jet2 and TUI both adding new routes to their network of popular European destinations. The airport continued to carry out significant improvements to passenger and airfield facilities as part of an ongoing £120m investment programme.
Strong operational performance saw 99% of passengers passing though security in 15 minutes or less, while it achieved the highest ‘Very Good’ CAA rating for accessibility for the sixth year running, thanks to its award-winning assisted travel service.
MAG also increased the amount of cargo it handled by 12.5%, driven primarily by strong growth at East Midlands. With cargo volumes topping 400,000 tonnes for the first time since the pandemic, it accounted for a third of all air cargo growth in the UK.
2025 saw seven new cargo airlines start operations at the airport, including Chinese logistics firm YunExpress which launched its first UK route with a twice weekly service to China, alongside Etihad Cargo, Atlas Air, Saudi Cargo, SF Express, Hong Kong Air Cargo and Ethiopian Cargo running services to the United Arab Emirates and Asia.
Last year the airport also announced its plans to meet the future demand for freight – set to increase by 54% over the next two decades. This investment would add 50 hectares of cargo capacity – increasing volumes to more than 580,000 tonnes per year and supporting up to £3.4bn in further economic contributions to the regional economy.
The report also points to progress on protecting the environment and supporting local communities – with 100% of the airport’s operational vehicles starting to run on biodiesel and a broad programme of engagement with local communities. This involved education and training opportunities including its first-ever Aviation Careers Festival, as well as staff volunteering, funding community projects and staging a series of events to celebrate its 60th anniversary with communities, staff and stakeholders.
East Midlands Airport’s Managing Director Steve Griffiths said: “The investment in our growing cargo operations across the financial year bolsters East Midlands Airport’s position as a central driver of UK international trade, while our passenger operation provides travellers from across our region with a range of popular European destinations all year round.
“It was a pleasure to mark our 60th anniversary year celebrating the impact we have had on our communities, colleagues and wider region.”