Manchester Airports Group delivered £6.2 billion of economic value for the UK economy and the communities in which its four UK airports operate.
This means that for every £1 the group earned in revenue, economic activity worth another £8 is generated in the wider economy as a result.
The 16% rise in the 2015-16 financial year comes on the back of a record 12 months which culminated in nearly 52 million passengers using Manchester, Stansted, East Midlands and Bournemouth airports – a rise of 7%.
The airports delivered a “significant reduction” in their environmental impact, mainly through a 15% reduction in carbon emissions and a 41% cut in the number of registered noise complaints, according to Mag’s newly published corporate social responsibility report.
Group operations supported the employment of 124,000 people across the UK, up 2.5% year-on-year, with more than 39,000 directly employed.
Its three employment academies, two Aerozone education centres, and more than 10,000 hours of staff volunteering, contributed to the education of over 20,000 young people.
The airport group’s CSR director, Neil Robinson, said: “Mag’s approach is guided by our belief that when our business prospers, the regions and communities in which we operate prosper.
“We also know that delivering growth in the right way is key to securing the support of our stakeholders and as our airports continue to grow over the coming years, we recognise the importance to local communities of being able to deliver this growth without increasing the environmental impacts associated with our operations.
“The figures we are releasing today demonstrate the powerful role that airports across the country play in generating wider social and economic benefit for their local communities and the UK economy.
“In a year when we have transported a record 50 million passengers, we have managed to significantly reduce our environmental impact through a variety of initiatives such as the introduction of GPS flight path technology that has cut our noise impact and also managing to make Manchester airport’s ground operations carbon neutral.
“As the north’s global gateway, Manchester airport will do more than any other UK airport to drive the northern economy forward, providing international connectivity directly from the region.
“Similarly, Stansted’s growth over the next ten to 15 years will not only provide much-needed airport capacity in the south, it will also play a key role in supporting economic development and employment in London and the east of England.”