Birmingham Airport’s CEO Nick Barton is joined by Aviation Minister Paul Maynard, and Saqib Bhatti MP, to officially break the ground on the £30 million (€35m) departure lounge extension.
The start of construction on Birmingham Airport’s £30 million (€35m) departure lounge extension was officially marked by UK Aviation Minister Paul Maynard MP on 23 January 2020.
Joined by airport CEO Nick Barton and newly-elected MP for Meriden Saqib Bhatti, the Aviation Minister helped to break the ground where Birmingham Airport’s biggest terminal investment in 10 years gets underway.
The project will provide a modern two-storey extension with outdoor terrace area, growing the space by 45% to create more natural light, circulation space, seating and toilets, plus five new catering units and three additional retail outlets.
The Minister’s visit was the second stop on his UK tour of regional airports, as part of the Department for Transport’s Regional Air Connectivity Review. The review was launched recently as part of a series of measures to support regional connectivity across the UK.
“Our second city’s airport serves more than one million passengers every month, so it is vital that it has the world-class facilities and state-of-the-art infrastructure it deserves,” comments Aviation Minister Paul Maynard. “This modern extension to the departure lounge will be good news for the whole of Birmingham, helping boost the local economy while still supporting the airport’s wider commitment of becoming net zero by 2033.”
In July 2019, Birmingham Airport published its Master Plan outlining how over the next 15 years it will invest £500 million (€600m) to meet the 40% forecast growth in passenger numbers from the current 12.7 million to an expected 18 million by 2033.
“The extended lounge forms part of a wider terminal transformation project, known as TE18, which will cater for the forecast growth in passenger numbers,” says Nick Barton, CEO Birmingham Airport. “The departure lounge extension is the largest component of TE18 and the biggest terminal investment we have made in 10 years. Once complete early next year, it will provide a spacious and modern facility for our customers with a wide range of shops, restaurants and amenities.”
Other developments taking place over the next three years forming the TE18 programme of works include an enlarged passenger security search area equipped with the latest X-ray equipment, further self-service bag drop kiosks, and increased capacity in the baggage make-up hall and additional arrivals baggage carousels.
Birmingham recently committed to becoming a net zero carbon airport by 2033, some years ahead of the UK’s 2050 target. It is developing a carbon roadmap to outline how this can be achieved over the next 15 years.
