Tim Samunyai from Coventry arrived around 5.40am for a 6.55pm departure to Zimbabwe on Sunday (10 April).
Samunyai told the Manchester Evening News (MEN) he wanted to avoid the “madness” of recent travel chaos at the airport, admitting news coverage had caused him to “panic”.
The 56-year-old said his worries had been fuelled by television news reports showing sprawling queues at airline check-in desks during the recent half-term holidays.
When arriving at the airport, Samunyai was told by a member of staff he had “broken the record” for the earliest person to arrive for their flight.
