Present Day
Following major capital investment Bombardier sold the airport in 2003 for £35 million to the Spanish company Ferrovial, the owner of BAA Airports. Ferrovial re-sold the airport in September 2008 for £132.5 million to ABN Amro Global Infrastructure Fund.
On 30 October 2007, Ryanair established its 23rd base at the airport. The newest route was between Belfast and London Stansted, following Air Berlin's announcement that it would discontinue the route on 31 October 2007. On 31 August 2010, Ryanair announced it would close its Belfast City base, meaning all Ryanair services were lost from 31 October 2010. Five routes and 800,000 passengers per annum will be lost at the airport as a result. The closure of the base was due to the planned runway extension being delayed for a further two years. The airline had stated it would fly to European destinations from the airport if the runway was extended.
The handling agent at the airport is Servisair, which also operates at most other airports in the UK & Ireland.
Passenger numbers increased by 4.5% from 2,621,763 in 2009 to 2,740,341 in 2010, the highest total on record at the airport.
Read more about this topic: George Best Belfast City Airport
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