Newcastle Airport is quietly one of Britain’s top aviation hubs. As recently as 2024 the northeastern airport was named the best place to fly from in the world (in its category for hubs with fewer than five million annual passengers), and it also took the same title in 2023. NCL missed out on winning the gong for a third time in a row in 2025, but was still named in Britain’s top five airports by Which?.
And now even more passengers are set to enjoy Newcastle International Airport’s services. The place is set to undergo a vast £60 million expansion, which will eventually see it nearly double its annual passenger numbers.
Newcastle’s Masterplan 2040, which was announced earlier this year, aims to ‘strengthen its role as a vital gateway connecting the North East to the world’. In the next 15 years the airport intends to employ nearly 2,000 more people and contribute a whopping £900 million more to the regional economy, as well as increase yearly passenger numbers to nine million.
Construction of a three-floor extension to its terminal building has now officially begun. That new structure will feature stuff like a bigger departure lounge (with more seating, toilets and food options, plus extra check-in desks and new self-service bag-drop counters) and an enhanced arrivals area (with two more baggage carousels). Passengers will also benefit from 20 more aircraft stands, and an extended runway that is able to accommodate more airlines.
Travellers could start seeing the benefits of the expansion by as soon as next summer, which is when the extra baggage carousels are expected to start operating.
New routes from Newcastle Airport in winter 2025 and summer 2026
Beyond its long-term expansion plans, several carriers have announced new services from Newcastle. Ryanair announced in August that it would be basing a third aircraft in the northeast this winter, launching new routes to Brussels, Budapest, Gdańsk, Malta and Wrocław, and adding more flights for services to Alicante, Dublin, and Kraków.
Next summer easyJet will launch 11 new routes from Newcastle, offering services to Antalya, Dalaman, Rhodes, Corfu, Faro, Malta, Prague, Reus, Nice, Sharm-El-Sheikh and Enfidha.
Jet2 will also increase its services from Newcastle in summer 2026, with routes to Marrakech and Budapest.
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