Manchester Airport second runway linked to £9.5bn annual economic impact

Manchester Airport’s second runway has helped drive changes in trade, investment, tourism and education across the North of England over the past 25 years, according to a new report assessing its economic impact.

image: MAG

The report, A Route to Growth for the North, was produced by economic consultancy Metro Dynamics to mark the 25th anniversary of the runway, which opened in February 2001. It estimates that Manchester Airport now contributes £9.5bn a year to the Northern economy.

Runway 2 was approved in 1997 and represented an investment of £172m. Manchester Airport says construction was completed within four years of approval. It remains the only airport outside London with two full-length runways.

The report argues that the additional capacity provided by the runway helped establish Manchester as an international gateway for the North, with the airport now connecting the region to more than 200 countries and markets representing around 75% of global GDP.

It identifies a number of economic trends alongside the expansion of international connectivity. The value of Northern goods trade increased by 66% between 2008 and 2025, while net foreign direct investment into the North West increased by £6.7bn, according to figures cited in the report.

North West visitor numbers increased by 122% between 2002 and 2024, the report says, the largest increase recorded among UK regions outside London. It also highlights the role of international students, estimating that they generated £7.9bn in net economic impact across the North in 2024/25.

The report also points to a 48% increase in North West industrial land values between 2017 and 2023, the highest increase among UK regions, although the figures do not establish that the airport or second runway was the sole cause of these changes.

The second runway was developed against a backdrop of significant economic restructuring in the North West. The airport's own history records that passenger numbers had reached 15 million by 1995, while plans for a second runway had formed part of a longer-term strategy to increase capacity.

Evidence presented to Parliament during the planning process highlighted the airport's existing contribution to the regional economy. In 1996, it was estimated that airport activity supported around 58,000 jobs when direct, indirect, induced, tourism and inward-investment effects were taken into account.

Passenger numbers have subsequently increased substantially. Manchester Airport handled 32.3 million passengers in the 12 months to March 2026, according to Manchester Airports Group (MAG), up 3.6% on the previous year.

The Metro Dynamics report argues that the airport's existing two-runway configuration still has capacity to support substantial further growth. It estimates that passenger numbers could potentially almost double from the current level, although that would depend on future demand, airline decisions, airport investment, planning and wider transport capacity.

The report also places emphasis on the importance of surface transport connections to the airport.

Lord Jim O’Neill, president of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership and author of the report's foreword, said Manchester Airport had become an asset benefiting more than Greater Manchester, but argued that its potential catchment was constrained by the quality of transport connections from elsewhere in the North.

He said investment in Northern Powerhouse Rail would be important in allowing more of the region to access the airport and its international connections.

Greater Manchester Mayor Bev Craig similarly said improved rail connections, including a proposed high-speed station at Manchester Airport, would help spread the benefits of international connectivity more widely.

“Manchester Airport is Greater Manchester’s gateway to the world and one of the North’s great success stories,” she said. “For 25 years, its second runway has helped connect our businesses, universities and communities to global markets, and has played a major role in our city-region’s reinvention.”

She added that Northern Powerhouse Rail could “cut journey times, open up access to jobs and opportunities, and help unlock the North’s full potential.”

The emphasis on rail connectivity reflects a wider debate over how the economic benefits associated with major transport infrastructure can be distributed beyond the immediate area around an airport.

Manchester Airports Group chief executive Ken O’Toole said the report demonstrated the potential for airport infrastructure to influence regional economic development.

“Airports are not just buildings people pass through as they travel for work or leisure – they are a route to growth for regional economies,” he said.

O’Toole argued that the experience of Runway 2 showed the longer-term effects that could follow major infrastructure investment and called for further investment in transport links, including Northern Powerhouse Rail.