What the new-look T3 is expected to look like(Image: Manchester Airport)Manchester Airport has unveiled new multi-million pound plans to redevelop Terminal 3.
Computer-generated images showing what the new terminal is expected to look like once work is complete next year have also been revealed and can be revealed exclusively by the Manchester Evening News today.
The news comes as the airport’s massive £1.3billion project to revamp T2 reaches another key milestone, with work to build a new road starting and the first trials of new taxiways on the airfield completed successfully.
The old entrance to T1 will become the new T3 entrance, the M.E.N. can reveal, and the new terminal will be kitted out with shops, stores, a 500-seat bar area with airfield views and a new dining hall. More space – and more seats – are being promised.
When the new T2 is fully open, likely to be later this year, T1 will close completely.
The new plans for the largely domestic route T3, which initially opened in 1989, will involve using part of the T1 building, as both terminals sit beside each other and are joined together.
Terminal 3 at Manchester Airport(Image: M.E.N.)The project will remodel the entrance to the terminal, the security hall and the departure lounge – creating extra space for passengers and for new retailers – as well as updating the ‘look and feel’ of the old building, said the airport.
There’s even a nod to the emblem of Manchester – the Manchester worker bee – with honeycomb lights mirroring the look of the new T2, the images reveal.
The airport has announced the key elements of the investment in Terminal 3.
A new entrance to the terminal with more space, easier access and better facilitiesBrand new security equipment40 per cent more seating capacity in the departure loungeNew shops and food and drink outletsA new 500 seat bar area with airfield viewsAn expanded dining area with 200 extra seatsMore shops and facilities landside in the arrivals area of the terminal
Airport bosses said initial work on the project has already started – and it’s all due for completion next year.
The airport said the project would free-up space and improve the passenger experience.
A spokesperson told the M.E.N.: “The project will remodel the entrance to the terminal, the security hall and the departure lounge – creating extra space for passengers and for new retailers, as well as updating the look and feel of the building.
The new look T3(Image: Manchester Airport)“The Northern hub launched its ambitions transformation programme in 2015. It involves doubling the size of Terminal 2 and closing Terminal 1 – but now we have set out how we plan to use some of the space in Terminal 1 after it closes to expand the adjoining Terminal 3.”
The first phase of the airport’s decade-long transformation saw an extension added to the existing Terminal 2 building to double its size. The extension opened in 2021 and has now served more than 30 million passengers and won a top global architecture and design award.
The second phase of the project is due for completion later this year. It will bring the existing part of the building up to the same standard as the extension, with the addition of more than 20 new retailers, bars and restaurants.
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Once complete, the new T2 is expected to serve more than 70 per cent of all passengers passing through the airport. T1 will then close, with parts of the building retained to boost T3 under the plans announced today.
Manchester Airport Managing Director Chris Woodroofe said: “We are proud to connect the people of the North to the world – and our transformation programme means that our passengers will be able to enjoy an airport experience that rivals that of any European capital city.
T3(Image: MEN Media)“The work we’ve done in Terminal 2 is there for all to see – and we’ve already won the prestigious Prix Versailles award for its architecture and design. But until now we haven’t talked about our plans for Terminal 3.
“Moving to a two-terminal airport is giving us a great opportunity to use some of the existing Terminal 1 space to increase the footprint of Terminal 3. We’re doing that as well as making some all round improvements to Terminal 3 – so passengers will enjoy new security technology, more space, more seats, new retail and food and drink, and more.
“It’s another exciting step towards delivering an even better experience for our passengers and I can’t wait to see it progress.”
Meanwhile, work to build a brand-new road near Terminal 2 has begun. Ground has been broken in a project to build Sydney Avenue – a new link road near the Thorley Lane entrance to the airport site. The new road will replace the existing Sydney Avenue and will improve traffic flow around the area.
The first trials of new taxiways on the airfield have also been successfully completed, the airport said. They will allow more aircraft on the airfield and the trials are said to represent a ‘significant step’ towards the new T2 fully opening.
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