Manchester airport is celebrating its 85th birthday this week, with a series of commemorations including an 85-prize giveaway, and the return of a Venetian chandelier last seen at Terminal 1 in 2003.
The airport – then know as Ringway – officially opened its doors on June 25, 1938, with KLM operating the first flight from the facility on June 27.
To mark the milestone the airport is running a giveaway with a total of 85 prizes, including a flights-plus-hotel package to Las Vegas when the route resumes next year.
Other prizes include executive lounge access, meals at selected airport eateries, Duty Free vouchers, Champagne tours of Concorde at the Runway Visitor Park, airport goody bags, and flights with airlines including Air France, Hainan Airlines, Emirates, Air Transat, Singapore Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines and Turkish Airlines.
The prize draw runs until July 26, with winners being picked on Manchester Day on July 29.
In addition the airport is hosting pop-up exhibition Who Built Wythenshawe (the town located immediately to the north of Manchester airport), and is giving away thousands of reusable water bottles branded with its 85th birthday logo to passengers and staff.
Finally the airport is set to bring back one of three Venetian chandeliers which hung in Terminal 1 for over four decades before being removed in 2003.
A project with Manchester Metropolitan University will see the glassware remodelled and eventually hung in the airport’s redesigned Terminal 2 departures hall when it opens in 2025.
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Commenting on the news Chris Woodroofe, managing director of Manchester Airport, said:
“We are proud to celebrate 85 years of connecting this region to the world, and it is fantastic to be joined in marking this occasion by many of the airline partners who have helped Manchester Airport grow into the UK’s global gateway in the North.
“Manchester Airport is already the UK’s largest airport outside London but we are intent on improving the passenger experience.
“Our £1.3bn Transformation Programme is due to be completed in 2025 and will give us the platform to compete with other major European airports for routes to new destinations, which will, in turn, attract inward investment to the wider region.”
For our look at where to stay in and around Manchester airport, see:
