A lesser known British airport could become one of the UK's biggest transport hubs after announcing a major expansion.
Bosses at London's Southend Airport have unveiled ambitions to welcome as many as 10million passengers a year after it exchanged hands earlier this year. The airport, near Southend-on-Sea, Essex, currently only sees passengers in the thousands after being hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Despite having a capacity for 3.5million, the numbers are slowly increasing again and are expected to reach 1million next year. Despite being a small airport, Brits can still fly to international destinations, including Morocco, Turkey and the Canary Islands. New flights to Pisa, Antalya and Enfidha in Tunisia have also launched this year.
New CEO Amit Rikhy claims Southend is now the only airport serving London passengers which has the potential for expansion. He said he wants to see the airport cater for up to 10million a year - tripling its current capacity and putting it on a par with Bristol Airport.
Mr Rikhy, who is CEO of Carlyle Airport Group which announced a controlling stake in the airport in March, told the London Aviation Symposium that all other airports serving the capital had reached their peak capacity, with Southend the only one still able to grow.
CEO of Carlyle Airport Group, Amit Rikhy, who became one of the airport's new owners earlier this year, claims London Southend is the only airport serving the London market with the potential for significant expansion. According to Aviation Week, the CEO is also exploring the potential for state-of-the-art technology such as X-rays for security and self-handling baggage to improve the check-in process.
“Why did we invest in Southend? Access to London," he said. “We’re looking at things like self-handling baggage and making it more efficient for passengers to self-check-in ... queue management and better wayfinding," he said.
