EasyJet has signed a deal with the new owners of Stansted Airport allowing it to more than double its passenger numbers there to 6 million in the next five years.
M.A.G, which acquired the London airport three months ago, said the new "long-term growth framework" would help "make Stansted the best airport in London".
EasyJet currently has 2.8 million passengers at Stansted, operating eight aircraft on up to 27 routes from Stansted, including new flights to Bulgaria, Morocco and Egypt.
M.A.G chief executive Charlie Cornish said: "We are delighted that easyJet has chosen Stansted. We’re working hard with existing and prospective airlines to drive passenger growth at Stansted so today’s announcement by easyJet on the new framework for growth is a positive first step.
"London Stansted will flourish under M.A.G’s ownership as we actively market the airport, the region and its strong connectivity, including direct rail access to both London and Cambridge, to airlines and introduce lots more airline competition into the London market.
"The quality of our offer is compelling and we strongly believe that London Stansted has a key role to play in any debate on South East capacity and today’s positive announcement by easyJet confirms that."
But it is not certain that easyJet will take advantage of the deal’s full potential, as it has also struck similar deals with Edinburgh and Gatwick airports since they were sold off by airports operator BAA.
An easyJet spokeswoman said: "It is too early to say. The deal gives us the framework to do so but we won’t take decisions on capacity for next year for some months.
"However in the meantime we will continue to focus on the new routes we launched there recently like Marrakech and Sharm el Sheik."
by Bev Fearis
