Destinations favoured by travellers this Christmas period are those offering an escape from the cold, such as the Canary Islands, or festive city breaks in Dublin, Belfast, Riga, Amsterdam, Budapest and Berlin.
And the airport has given those due to travel this festive season its top tips for ensuring their time at the airport is as smooth as possible. Passengers who want to retain some element of a traditional Christmas should pack wisely. Those wishing to take Christmas crackers with them should check with their airline before flying as policies do vary. However, the airport is advising against items such as party poppers and snow globes. Gifts should also be left unwrapped if they’re taken through security in hand luggage.
Steve Griffiths, East Midlands Airport’s Managing Director, said: “We look forward to welcoming passengers to East Midlands Airport during this festive season as people travel to be with friends and family or take well-earned breaks. It’s been a momentous year for the aviation sector as it found its feet after such a prolonged period of uncertainty and disruption. Here at EMA there is a very strong foundation to build on as we plan for 2023 and prepare to welcome even more passengers as demand for travel continues to grow. Having had a few months of stability this year, we can now plan with more certainty for next year as we strengthen our friendly and customer focused offer.”
EMA’s reputation as an easy-to-use airport got a boost this week as the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) rated its accessibility provision as “Very Good”. It is one of few UK airports to maintain this score throughout the year. In its report, the CAA references EMA as a leading example of how these services should be delivered. The full report can be found here.
The festive season marks the end of a year that saw passengers return to air travel following two years of pandemic disruption. Twelve months ago, travel restrictions were still in place and concern around the Omicron variant dampened enthusiasm and demand for overseas travel. As restrictions lifted, passengers numbers returned to 75% of pre-Covid levels.as people took their first trips this year.
Looking ahead, the airport hopes to build on this success and continue to grow the operation into 2023 when more passengers are expected. In readiness for this, the airport has already launched its recruitment drive for customer-facing roles in security, car parking and assisted travel teams. More than 100 vacancies are currently available to job seekers.
EMA continues to play a key role in ensuring parcels and gifts find their way under Christmas trees around the world in time. December is the airport’s ‘peak season’ for cargo when a surge in demand is driven by consumers. One million individual items pass through the airport each day with goods ranging from manufactured components to household items, and personal electronic devices to medical supplies pass through the airport every day.