Extra aircraft stands support East Midlands Airport’s expansion plans

East Midlands Airport in the UK has redesigned its aircraft stand spaces to increase capacity for both cargo and passenger operations as part of its strategic plan to grow services in the coming years. The airport has added new stand markings on its east and west aprons, doubling the capacity for wide-bodied cargo aircraft to seven, and will create four more stands for passenger aircraft on the central apron.

The redesign ties in with plans to develop parts of the airfield to handle forecasted growth in cargo operations and attract more passenger services. Last month, the airport announced that airline SunExpress will begin flights to Turkey next summer, supporting the push for more passenger traffic alongside strong cargo demand.

There are three main apron areas at East Midlands Airport: the east and west aprons are dedicated to cargo, while the central apron handles all passenger arrivals and departures. During the summer, the airport’s 23 passenger aircraft stands operate at full capacity. With more cargo airlines also choosing East Midlands, airport teams were tasked with increasing capacity within the existing apron space.

The redesign was a technical challenge that involved complex planning, new procedures, cultural shifts and a focus on safety. Staff from airfield operations, aviation safety, air traffic control, capital delivery and the control room worked together to deliver the changes. Planned improvements include a full re-marking of the central apron, new centreline lighting and expanded parking for ground service equipment.

Head of Airfield Operations Lauren Turner said: “The operation of an airfield is quite rightly highly regulated to ensure safety, and so any changes to layouts are a huge challenge involving a lot of different specialist knowledge at the airport. At East Midlands we have the extra challenge of being two airports in one – a friendly, customer-focused passenger airport by day and the UK’s number one airport for cargo by night.

“Our teams rose magnificently to this challenge and have found solutions to enable more cargo and passenger aircraft to operate from East Midlands. Both parts of our business work hand in hand to ensure our long-term success, so it’s crucial that we continue to invest in both areas. These changes will help us meet our medium-term plans to grow both sides of our business as we successfully attract more airlines to choose East Midlands as the best place for new operations.”