15million Passengers And Growing
These days, Stansted airport is an incredibly busy airport, Britains third busiest in fact and sports a huge array of additions since its opening back in 1943.
During the Second World War, airports or to be more precise, runways were at a premium. Britain needed every last bit of long tarmac it could get, not only to launch offensives in Europe but to help train the many new recruits flooding in to help the war effort. One of the most important aspects of wartime airfields were maintenance depots and RAF Stansted Mountifchet became exactly that.
After opening, the airfield became a base for both British and American aircraft, housing the USAAF Eight air Force as a heavy bomber airfield, but it doubled up as a maintenance and supply depot, helping rebuild broken and damaged planes that had returned from action. Once victory was secure in Europe howeber, Stansted (as it was always known) saw these operations moved to France, but it carried on as a supply stage.
With many changes since, Stansted looks a lot different with its terminal building, airport parking facilities or the impressive stansted airport hotels on the modern era and it would be some time before it came close to resembling what it has become today. In fact, between 1945 and 1966, the airfield had somewhat of a chequered period, housing German prisoners of war between 1946 and 1947 to being the base for all training of Fire Service personal for all British airport right up to the mid seventies.
By 1966, the first charter planes were flying passengers to holiday destinations from the airport thanks to the new owners BAA but it was clear the government saw greater potential than simply avoiding the growing delays at Gatwick and Heathrow. By 1969, the first terminal building was completed and underwent further expansion just a year later.
Through the eighties and nineties, expansion continued until more than 15 million passengers used the airport. It had grown beyond even the governments expectations and by 1988 a new terminal building was proposed, beign finished 3 years later along with the other buildings that have sprung up including the stansted hotels , car parks, restaurants and the close by train service.
As well as being a busy airport, Stansted has also featured the rich and famous with films, tv shows and adverts all being filmed at the airport including Flight 93 and Last Chance Harvey.


