Fall in use of Isle of Man Airport

A drop in the number of passengers travelling through the airport on the Isle of Man has been described as "disappointing".

The number of passengers using the airport fell to 66,600 in July, a five per cent fall when compared to 2006, with a decrease in the numbers flying to the North West of England and London being blamed for the decline.

Ann Reynolds, the airport's director, said the figures were "disappointing" and that the poor performance of routes to Liverpool and Manchester was of some concern.

"The reductions on these important routes will need to be looked at carefully," Ann Reynolds said. "The 2,600 passenger decrease on the Manchester route has been despite a 52 per cent increase in Euromanx traffic following their improvement in frequency from three to four flights daily.

"Liverpool, however, is disappointing as we would hope to encourage around 14,500 passengers to use the route and this figure was down to about 11,200. Euromanx provides an outstanding service with five daily flights and we are working closely with the airline to find ways to increase numbers on this vital route."

The end of a link from the Isle of Man to Luton Airport has also had a significant impact on the number of people travelling by air, but the route will be reinstated in October.

However, routes to Belfast, Blackpool, Dublin, Edinburgh, Leeds, Southampton and the Channel Islands all showed increases.

© Cheapflights Ltd Craig McGinty