Airport bosses in Newcastle have celebrated the two millionth passenger to pass through the terminal this year - and said it marked a key milestone in its post- pandemic recovery.
Charlotte Watson from Alnwick was about to set off for an American adventure with her family when airport staff told her she was the two millionth passenger of 2022 - and she was even presented with a £75 voucher to spend in duty-free. She was in the midst of checking in for her Aer Lingus flight to Boston via Dublin.
Charlotte, 33, was heading away with her husband and sons on Monday July 18 as the UK's heatwave hit. After being told that she was the milestone passenger, she thanked the airport team and said: "I can’t believe it. We are travelling to Boston and then on to Minneapolis to visit family and friends and then on to California for a road trip!"
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Chris Ion, Aviation Development Manager at the airport, said: "It is fantastic to have welcomed over two million passengers so far during 2022. We expect to see almost 900,000 passengers travelling to popular destinations this summer break, including Greece, Turkey, Dubai and Spain.
"Many passengers will also be travelling further afield to popular cities such as New York, Sydney and Bangkok, connecting via Dublin, Dubai, Paris, Amsterdam, London Heathrow and Frankfurt."
Mr Ion said 98% of passengers at the airport had passed through security in under six minutes. He added: "Our passenger experience alongside this 2 million milestone is a great reflection of the Airport’s post pandemic recovery and a testament to all of our hard-working employees.
"We look forward to welcoming more passengers back to the North East’s largest Airport this summer.”
Aer Lingus flights run from Newcastle to a range of destinations in the US and Canada via Dublin.
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