Manchester Airports Group has reported its seventh consecutive year of growth in adjusted EBITDA, up 5.8 per cent to £359 million.

The figure was driven by a 6.7 per cent increase in passenger numbers to 59 million.

At the same time, Manchester Airport consolidated its position as a European top 20 airport with the breadth and diversity of its 70-plus airlines and 220-plus destinations driving passenger growth of 6.5 per cent to 27.9 million.

Long-haul growth has been a highlight, with the Hong Kong route increased to daily frequency, and new routes announced to Mumbai, Seattle and Addis Ababa.

London Stansted Airport passenger numbers rose 7.4 per cent to 26.1 million this year.

Stansted is the fastest growing major airport in the UK and now handles 7.6 million more passengers per year than when MAG acquired it in 2013.

New services were announced to New York, Toronto, Boston and Washington DC, together with daily flights by Emirates to Dubai providing convenient onward connections to 150 worldwide destinations.

East Midlands Airport is the country’s busiest airport for ‘pure cargo’ aircraft and saw tonnage increase by 9.7 per cent to 358,000 tonnes.

Passenger numbers were also up 3.8 per cent to 4.9 million.

MAG chief executive, Charlie Cornish, said: “The world class connectivity that our airports are delivering will ensure that MAG continues to play a leading role in powering the UK economy.

“Manchester and London Stansted are the two largest UK airports with significant runway capacity and our investment will allow us to meet continued demand for aviation growth both in and out of the UK.

“The government’s support for airports looking to make the best use of existing capacity provides a clear framework for growth, and it is critical that it now matches its backing for Heathrow expansion with specific and practical proposals to improve rail access and maximise the potential of airports like Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands.

“As the UK prepares to leave the EU, we are confident that the UK government and the EU recognise the importance of providing confidence to passengers and airlines, and we welcome the commitment from both sides to putting in place a framework that will enable air services to continue post Brexit.

“Looking forward, our resilient foundations, healthy financial position and attractiveness of our UK airports will ensure that the business is well-placed to respond to any challenges that may be felt by the UK economy in the future and we continue to take a positive long-term view of our prospects for growth.”