September saw the sharpest increase in passenger numbers at East Midlands Airport so far this year – with more than 483,000 people passing through the popular gateway.
The year-on-year increase of nearly 8% saw an extra 35,000 people choosing the airport compared to the same month last year.
Together with the numbers using the airport since the start of the summer season in April, it means East Midlands has handled a total of 2.85m passengers so far – up by 103,000 (4%) compared to this time last year.
The increase has been driven by Ryanair filling an extra 30,000 seats, with routes to Spain, France and Italy benefiting mostly, and an extra 5,000 seats on Jet2 flights led by a resurgence on four Turkish routes, compared to last September.
The positive operational performance comes hot on the heels of the announcement at the National Transport Awards that East Midlands Airport is Airport of the Year. Its high customer satisfaction ratings, investment in customer improvements, ongoing cargo excellence and commitment to providing effortless travel to all customers, including those with mobility issues, all played a part in the prestigious win. Judges also considered its proactive approach to connecting local people to job opportunities and positive engagement with neighbouring communities. Last week East Midlands also became the first UK airport to introduce contactless e-gates to improve passengers’ arrival experience.
East Midlands Airport’s Managing Director Steve Griffiths said:
“We’re pleased that we’re attracting increasing numbers of people to choose East Midlands as the best and easiest starting point for their holidays. It’s particularly encouraging to see the biggest monthly growth this year delivered after another busy period over the school summer holidays.
“It’s great to see some of our well-established routes to Spain, Italy and France continuing to perform well outside the summer peak, along with more people choosing to fly to Antalya, Dalaman, Bodrum and Izmir in Turkey.
“Our teams work hard to make sure our customers have a good experience, which reflects in the growing numbers and the high customer satisfaction scores we achieve. After another great summer, we’re focused on the quieter winter months when we still offer a wide range of destinations to choose from.”
Posted on 12 October 2026
