UK consumer watchdog Which? has published the results of its annual airport survey, as passengers tell of their “awful” experiences at Manchester Airport.
In a survey of almost 5,000 people, Manchester Airport’s Terminal 3 finished bottom for the third consecutive year with a “dismal” customer score of just 37 per cent.
Respondents were invited to rate UK airports across 11 categories, including seating, staff, toilets and queues at check in, bag drop, passport control and security.
A customer score was calculated based on a combination of overall satisfaction and likeliness to recommend.
The terminal received just one star for seating, staff, queues at security, range of shops and prices in shops, and managed no higher than two stars in any of the remaining categories, including for toilets.
With some of the ‘moving walkways’ at Manchester’s Terminal 3 out of action since 2021, and repair works still ongoing, as well as widespread complaints about queues and lack of seating, passengers reported unhappy experiences.
One disappointed customer summed up their time at the terminal as “queuing, queuing, queuing. Not enough staff, poorly trained, surly bordering on rude”.
Another told Which?: “Manchester T3 sums up everything that is bad about UK airports. Too many flights mean too many people crowded into a space not designed to take that many.”
“It’s just awful,” said a third. “The worst advert for anyone flying to the UK. It’s the worst airport I have ever used, and by quite a long way compared to other UK and especially overseas airports.”
Manchester Airport said it disagreed with the survey findings in relation to customer satisfaction and security waiting times, and noted that its own data shows 97 per cent of people take less than 15 minutes to pass through security.
A spokesperson for the airport said: “As in previous years, Which? is letting consumers down with over-simplified judgements based on the outdated and unrepresentative testimony of a narrow group of travellers, as well as publishing misleading statements and factual inaccuracies.
“Manchester Airport is proud to give people in all parts of the North easy and affordable access to nearly 200 different destinations across the world.
“We know our nearly 30 million passengers value the fact we make it possible for them to fly directly to places they otherwise wouldn’t be able to, whether that is for business or leisure, to study or visit friends and family.
“We also know they value an experience that caters for all needs, tastes and budgets, and through our £1.3bn Manchester Airport Transformation Programme, we are creating world-class facilities that give them just that.
“Due for completion next year, it is already winning awards and receiving high levels of customer satisfaction.”
They added that Manchester understands “not every experience is perfect”, while stating that the airport wants all passengers to feel able to raise concerns directly with it.
Manchester Airport Terminal 1, which is scheduled for closure next year, fared slightly better, with a customer score of 40 per cent.
It received just one star for its staff, queues at security and prices in shops, and a clutch of two star ratings in most of the remaining categories.
Its highest rating of three stars was for its toilets. Terminal 2, which is currently undergoing a multi-million pound upgrade, was the highest rated of Manchester’s Terminals, tied with Heathrow’s Terminal 4 with a score of 51 per cent.
