Manchester Airport (IATA: MAN, ICAO: EGCC) is an international airport in Ringway, Manchester, England, 7 miles (11 km) south-west of Manchester city centre. In 2022, it was the third busiest airport in the United Kingdom in terms of passengers (the busiest outside of London) and the 19th busiest airport in Europe in 2023, with 28.1 million passengers served.
The airport comprises three passenger terminals and a cargo terminal. It covers an area of 560 hectares (1,400 acres) and has flights to 199 destinations, placing the airport thirteenth globally for total destinations served.
Officially opened on 25 June 1938, it was initially known as Ringway Airport, a name still in local use. In World War II, as RAF Ringway, it was a base for the Royal Air Force. The airport is owned and managed by the Manchester Airport Holdings (trading as MAG), a holding company owned by the Australian finance house IFM Investors and the ten metropolitan borough councils of Greater Manchester, with Manchester City Council owning the largest stake. Ringway, after which the airport was named, is a village with a few buildings and a church at the western edge of the airport.
In 2017, it underwent major expansion to double the size of Terminal 2, the first elements opening in 2019. The £1 billion expansion will be completed in 2024 and enable Terminal 2 to handle 35 million passengers. Capacity exists for up to 50 million passengers annually with two runways; however, this potential figure is limited by the airport’s restriction to 61 aircraft movements per hour as well as existing terminal sizes to process arrivals and departures effectively.