The managing director of Manchester Airport has stepped down after weeks of chaos for travellers.
Karen Smart has been with Manchester Airports Group (MAG) for eight years and in her current role for the last two.
In a statement MAG, which also owns East Midlands and Stansted airports, said she has "decided now is the time to return to the south of England, where her family is based, to pursue fresh career opportunities".
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Ian Costigan will take on the role of interim managing director and will be responsible for delivering the programmes of recruitment needed to increase operational capacity over the summer.
Since joining MAG in 2013, Mr Costigan has held a number of senior positions in the business, including his most recent position of group transformation director.
The resignation comes after travellers have faced long delays and chaotic scenes in recent weeks, with queues trailing outside terminals to reach check-in and hordes of people waiting to get through security and to pick up luggage.
Piles of suitcases have been left in terminals after travellers abandoned the wait to reclaim their baggage and instead left for home, the PA news agency reports.
MAG CEO Charlie Cornish said: "Over the last two years, Karen has guided Manchester Airport through the most challenging period of its 84-year history, having made a major contribution to MAG throughout her time with the business.
"I am sorry to lose Karen after her years of valuable service, but also understand her desire to return to the South for family reasons and indeed to explore new career opportunities.
"While there are sure to be further challenges ahead, I am confident we will soon start to see the benefits of the recovery plans Karen has helped put in place and look forward to working with Ian and his leadership team to drive them forward."
Prior to her role at Manchester, Karen Smart was managing director of East Midlands, and before that had a series of leadership positions at Stansted.
