THE number of passengers using Isle of Man Airport last month was almost the same as 12 months earlier.
There were 58,915 passengers using the airport, just 35 fewer than in May 2011.
And it’s a far cry from the figures from May 2008, before the global economic downturn, when passengers numbers were just short of 71,600 – up nearly 4,000 more than in May 2007 and this despite the collapse of EuroManx.
While this is the second consecutive month that there has been a small decline, airport bosses say they do not come as a surprise. During most of the month there were no London City flights and the Southampton service ended.
It was only from May 28 that British Airways started its service on the London City route with a single daily flight. This will be increased to the full three daily services from Monday.
Last year nearly 4,000 passengers flew on the London City route and, when it was dropped by Aer Arann, many opted to transfer to Flybe’s Gatwick service last month. As a result the Gatwick passenger numbers were up by 33 per cent with flights averaging 77 per cent full for the month.
The launch of the daily Oxford service on behalf of Manx2.com on May 8 also helped to relieve the shortage of capacity to the South East, and flights on this new route were two thirds full for the first three weeks of operation.
Airport director Ann Reynolds recognised that May was a month where substantial route changes were bound to affect passenger numbers.
She said: ‘We are actually very comfortable to again be essentially matching the 2011 passenger traffic levels.
‘The lack of the Southampton route, London City service cut, together with other South East service reductions, have effectively meant that well over 5,600 passengers have either been unable to fly or have had to find other air services to use.
‘However, with 3,500 more flying from Gatwick, 580 taking advantage of the new Oxford route, and 200 hopping on to the new British Airways service to City Airport when it started at the end of the month, this shortfall has been reduced considerably.’
Despite the introduction of the Oxford route, both Gloucester and Bristol numbers increased, but the loss of the Southampton route hit south and south west totals hard with numbers down 1,250, many again electing to transfer to the Gatwick or Oxford routes.
The first flight from Anglesey for the summer was virtually full and the Norwich service also started on May 26.
• The airport says that TT traffic was up 4 per cent on 2011.
More than 41,100 passengers used Ronaldsway during the period May 27 to June 10.
Last year around 39,800 flew through the airport, and passenger numbers for TT 2012 has only been surpassed in recent years during the TT Centenary Year back in 2007, when there were about 2,200 more passengers.
As we reported earlier in the month. the Steam Packet reported its busiest TT in a decade, apart from the 2007 centenary. Some 35,172 passengers travelled to the island on ferries between May 23 and June 8, up 4.3 per cent on 2011.