Three milestones in a £1 billion expansion of Manchester airport have been celebrated.
A ‘topping out’ ceremony was held to mark the extension to Terminal Two reaching its highest point after just more than a year of construction.
The terminal is more than doubling in size through the project, which will make it one of the busiest in Europe.
Secondly, a 45m, 85 tonne bridge that will connect the terminal extension with a new multi-storey car park was lifted into place. It took four days and two cranes to install the link, which become available to passengers when the extension opens in 2020.
Main structural work has also been completed on the car park building and will be fully completed by next summer.
The terminal extension is set over five floors and will see 844 glass panels installed to provide passengers with panoramic views of the airport.
Work will now start to make the building water-tight, before fitting out for passengers to use from 2020.
It will have an extra 60 shops and food and drink units. As well as high street retailers, the airport aims to include a range of independent and local brands.
Building work started in July 2017 after a visit by transport secretary Chris Grayling.
The celebrations were shared with apprentices who are working on the construction site transformation and local businesses that have secured contracts as part of it.
More than 1,300 people are working on site, including 90 apprentices in various trades. The number is expected to raise to nearly 1,500 people with a target of 150 apprentices.
The first pier is set to open in April 2019 and will shortly start to undergo operational readiness trials.
Work has also been progressing on the airfield to help maximise the terminal capacity. In the first phase of airfield works, the apron has been extended to the west to include new taxiways and aircraft stands around the new pier.
The second phase, which began in June, involves a new taxiway, increasing the capacity of existing taxiways, and new aircraft stands as part of a reconfiguration that will help to feed the redeveloped Terminal Two.
After the terminal extension, the next pier is due to open in 2022 and the refurbishment of the existing Terminal Two building will also be completed.
Terminal One is set to close by 2023 with a third pier planned to open in 2024.
The fully redeveloped terminal will be capable of handling 45 million passengers in 2024.
Airport CEO Andrew Cowan said: “It is exciting to mark these milestones as they demonstrate how much progress has been made on our transformation programme since starting work just more than a year ago.
“Hopefully this gives our customers an appreciation of how soon they will be able to start making use of these new state-of-the-art facilities.
“This scheme will be transformational, not just in terms of the buildings being created, but the experience we will be able to deliver to passengers and airlines.
“It is also making a major contribution to skills and employment in the region and that is why it was great to share the occasion with many of the people who are working on the project.”