Stansted Airport could now service as many as 35 million customers a year thanks to new government approval.
The airport had originally been restricted by planning regulations to a maximum of 25 million annual customers and it is this decision which has now been overturned.
The change in permission will also allow a maximum 264,000 air transport movements per year from the airport’s single runway as opposed to the 241,000 the airport is currently licensed for.
Stansted managing director Stewart Wingate said: “We are naturally delighted that the Secretaries of State have granted permission for the next phase of growth at Stansted. This secures our future up to 35 million passengers a year.
We will now be studying the full detail of the decision, including the independent Planning Inspector’s report, before commenting further. What we can say today though is that this is clearly great news for passengers and for businesses located in the local community or across the wider region.”
The original application was refused by Uttlesford District Council in November 2006 but has been overturned following an appeal by the airport and a four-and-a-half-month independent public enquiry.