Stansted Airport submits planning application for 51 million passengers a year
Stansted Airport has submitted a planning application to Uttlesford District Council to increase its annual passenger limit to 51 million over the next 20 years.
Manchester Airports Group wants permission to make “best use” of the existing single runway by the 2040s without any increase in the number of flights the airport is already permitted to operate and within the existing airport boundary.
In 2024, Stansted served nearly 30 million passengers, making it the third-busiest airport in London and the fourth-busiest in the UK. The current cap for travellers each year is 43 million.
Bosses have been consulting residents, businesses and passengers with a social media campaign and hundreds of one-to-one conversations.
More than 2,800 people across the area have responded, with almost 2,000 people backing expansion.
Managing director Gareth Powell said: “We’ve listened carefully to all the feedback from our neighbours, which has helped shape our plans to grow London Stansted in the most sustainable and responsible way possible.
“We have already kicked off our five-year £1.2bn investment programme to transform the airport, and if this application is approved, we will be able to unlock even more local opportunities and improvements over the next 20 years.
“Making the best use of our existing runway will help create more jobs and training schemes, better facilities for passengers and provide more seats to an even greater choice of destinations.
“We have an exciting and ambitious vision for London Stansted and how we best serve our region, so I’m asking for local people to lend their support so we can make this plan a reality.”
If approved, Stansted says its plans, first revealed in December last year, will unlock 4,500 new jobs; improvements to M11 Junction 8 to reduce congestion; funds for bus services, roads and tackling fly-parking; improvements to the Stansted Express trains; airport infrastructure powered by 100% renewable energy; Stansted Airport College doubling in size; and half of all passenger journeys by public transport, to relieve pressure on roads.