The Secretary of State for Transport visits to see transformation progress
London Stansted this week welcomed The Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander MP, who saw first-hand how the airport's transformation programme will boost the role it plays driving trade, investment and tourism for London and the East of England.
During the visit the Secretary of State toured the airport’s recently enlarged security hall that features 17 latest technology scanners that allows passengers to leave liquids and large electrical items in hand luggage, as well as receiving an update on the construction of airport’s new skylink walkways.
Stansted has welcomed a record-breaking number of passengers this year, and saw it achieve its busiest ever flying day this summer with over 700 aircraft movements, and the Secretary of State got to see first-hand during an airfield tour how the airport successfully delivers an efficient, reliable and safe flight operation every day.
The visit concluded at the airport’s new on-site solar farm, the only one of its kind at a London airport, which became operation in September this year and is now helping power the airport and supports Stansted’s commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions from its direct airport operations by no later than 2038.
The skylinks are one of the first features to be delivered as part of a wider, five-year programme that will help the airport increase passenger volumes up to 51m over the next two decades without the need for a new runway.
This development will see Stansted build on the economic contribution it already delivers to the UK, with latest figures from York Aviation revealing it supports £11.3bn of Gross Value Added each year, through a combination of direct jobs and by stimulating trade and tourism.
Gareth Powell, London Stansted’s Managing Director, said:
“We were delighted to welcome the Secretary of State to London Stansted and join us to see first-hand the progress we are making in delivering our ambitious investment plans to create an airport ready for the future and offer an even greater choice of destinations for our passengers.
“This year has been a very exciting period for everyone connected with London Stansted as we continue to welcome a record number of passengers, new airlines and routes and drive forward the airport’s transformation programme, so today’s visit was a fantastic chance to showcase the real momentum we have behind our vision for London Stansted.
“As one of the UK’s busiest airports serving more than 30m passengers a year, London Stansted already plays a key role in providing international connectivity for London and the East of England, offering 200 destinations across 40 countries, and more scheduled connections to Europe than any other UK airport.
“World-leading carriers Emirates and Turkish Airlines also connect passengers to hundreds of global destinations via their hubs in Dubai and Istanbul and act as a gateway to the world for our region.
“Last year we secured planning permission to serve up to 51m passengers a year, which alongside our investment plans, provides us with a strong platform to unlock the spare capacity on our existing runway and deliver our ambitious plans to sustainably increase passenger numbers, support economic growth and make a significant contribution to improving the UK’s connectivity with the rest of the world.”
Heidi Alexander, Transport Secretary, said:
“We support airport expansion where it balances economic growth with climate, noise and air quality obligations. I'm pleased to see Stansted’s plans to grow passenger numbers responsibly – boosting connectivity, jobs and growth across the East of England, while meeting environmental commitments.
“Stansted’s new solar farm is a shining example of how airports can cut their carbon footprint and reduce emissions as they grow. This comes as we invest £43 million to boost innovation that makes the sector even greener.”
The five-year transformation programme will deliver wide-ranging benefits to passengers and help secure links to even more global destinations. The centrepiece of the transformation is a three-bay extension to the existing terminal that will add 16,500m2 of space, creating a bright spacious environment with new shops, bars and restaurants, making Stansted the biggest single terminal airport in Europe.
The skylinks will directly connect the terminal to existing satellite buildings will allow Stansted’s track transit people mover system to be decommissioned. This in turn creates the space for the terminal building to be extended in later phases of the transformation work.