New daily flights to Gothenburg help Stansted boost passenger numbers

The choice of flights on offer to Brits wanting to travel to Sweden increased last month with Scandinavian flag carrier SAS returning with daily flights from Stansted to Gothenburg.

Fourteen years on from their last flights out of Stansted, SAS will operate from the airport's newly renovated departure area, Satellite One.

A new look

The £8 million upgrade of the departure area is just part of the transformation that the whole terminal is undergoing at the moment. Passengers flying on SAS will be able to enjoy charging points for phones and other devices as well as extra seating and new toilet facilities.

The terminal itself is also enjoying a facelift. In an £80 million project that is nearing completion, travellers will be able to choose to do their pre-flight shopping from a host of major high street stores including well known names such as Joules, Hugo Boss and Superdry.

Onwards and upwards

The return of daily SAS flights to Gothenburg wasn't the only good news for Stansted's Managing Director Andrew Harrison last month.

For nineteen straight months the airport has seen a continuous rise in the number of passengers who have flown from or arrived at its gates. October also marked six consecutive months where more than two million passengers used the airport, the first time since 2007 and an increase of 8.6% on the same month last year. "The significant increase in passenger numbers at Stansted continued during October as we enjoyed our 19th consecutive month of growth," Harrison said.

Occupied seats

Over the last twelve months passenger numbers have risen by 15% from the previous year, an increase to more than 22 million.

With 88% of all seats being occupied on every flight during last month – marking the airport’s busiest ever October – it seems that Brits are enjoying the alternative that Stansted provides from the traditional Heathrow and Gatwick journeys.

If you're thinking of taking a winter getaway, don't forget your last minute travel insurance in advance.

Date Created: 24/11/2015