Manchester Airport established on 25th June 1938 formerly known as Ringway, is a major airport located at Ringway in the City of Manchester within Greater Manchester, UK. In 2010 it was 4th busiest airport in the United Kingdom in terms of passenger numbers, and the busiest airport in the UK outside the London region. It was also the 3rd busiest UK airport in terms of total aircraft movements, and the 24th busiest airport in Europe. The terminals are located13.9 km southwest of Manchester city centre. The airport is owned and managed by the Manchester Airports Group (MAG), which is a holding company owned by the ten metropolitan borough councils of Greater Manchester, with Manchester City Council owning the largest stake and is the largest British-owned airport group. The airport has won awards including World's Best Airport 1995 and Travel Weekly Globe Awards' UK Best Airport 2008.

Manchester Airport has three passenger terminals (Terminals 1, 2 and 3). Terminals 1 and 2 are linked by the skylink, with travelators to aid passengers with the 10–15 minute walk. Terminal 3 is linked to Terminal 1 and the skylink by a covered walkway. The airport provides regular direct flights to destinations worldwide by over 60 airlines. North American carriers at Manchester include American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines and US Airways. The only UK operator serving the USA market is Virgin Atlantic. Airlines serving the Asian market include Air Blue, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Pakistan International Airlines, Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines. Manchester was an international hub for BMI which offered several destinations from Terminal 3, however the airline withdrew its routes from Manchester to North America and the Caribbean, including to Chicago and Las Vegas during early 2009. Scheduled airlines with a base at Manchester include: Bmibaby, EasyJet, Flybe, Jet2, Monarch and Virgin Atlantic. Charter airlines with a base at Manchester include: Fly Hellas, Thomas Cook Airlines, Thomson Airways Manchester also offers more destinations than some of the biggest airports in the US, including New York, Chicago and Dallas, although it is still slightly behind the three biggest 'hubs' in the global aviation network – Atlanta, Frankfurt am Main and Amsterdam – which each offer more than 250 destinations