Operations are back to normal at Manchester Airport today after both runways were shut due to the snow.
Yesterday (Saturday), both Runway 1 and Runway 2 had to be temporarily shut off due to snow and slush on the ground. The Manchester Evening News understands that a total of 40 inbound flights to the airport were cancelled or diverted throughout the day, while a total of 32 outbound flights were cancelled.
Passengers also complained of long delays and being stuck on planes for 'hours' due to the disruption at the airport. One frustrated passenger whose flight was delayed claimed the snow on the ground that halted operations was 'no more than a centimetre'.
Today (Sunday), the airport is back operating as normal. Passengers are still being urged to check with their airlines for the most up-to-date information as 'the continued cold weather may still impact journeys'.
The M.E.N understands that Runway 2 is not open at the airport today, but that this is standard procedure at certain periods during the weekend. A tweet posted by the airport this morning said: "Good morning! The airport is operating as normal today but the continued cold weather may still impact your journey.
"Passengers should contact their airline for flight information. Please check road and rail advice before travelling to the airport and take care."
Yesterday, a spokesperson for the airport said that health and safety was the 'top priority' as they apologised for the delays. They added that the runways were cleared on Friday, but that more heavy snow than fell which needed clearing.
In a statement, they said: "In anticipation of adverse weather forecast for this weekend, snow clearing teams have been on site since Friday. Both runways were fully cleared and treated ahead of this morning’s first scheduled flight.
"Health and safety is our top priority and when snow on the airfield reaches a particular depth, it must be cleared before operations can continue. Once this morning’s flying programme was underway, there was a fresh period of heavy snowfall, which required further clearing to take place.
"The decision was therefore made to temporarily close airfield operations from 07.45 to 11.30 whilst clearing could take place to return to safe levels. We apologise to all affected passengers for any inconvenience and thank them for their patience."
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