Former Gatwick chief operating officer Chris Woodroofe takes up the role after a stint with Chevron Traffic Management. He succeeds Karen Smart, who stepped down as MAN’s managing director in April.

Smart’s departure came amid a chaotic and challenging period for the airport as it struggled to achieve the necessary levels of staffing to meet post-Covid travel demand following the final easing of the UK’s Covid travel restrictions in mid-March.

Woodruffe, who is from Widness in the North West and took his first ever flight as a child from Manchester, will start in his new role on 15 June.

He will be supported by Ian Costigan, Manchester Airports Group’s transformation director, who has served as interim managing director of Manchester airport since Smart’s departure. He will continue to oversee operational functions at MAN.

Woodruffe said he was looking forward to working with the team at Manchester, leading the airport’s recovery and "driving the airport forward as the north’s global gateway".

“With the airport’s new Terminal 2 facilities and huge opportunities to attract new routes that enhance the north’s international connectivity, this really is an exciting time to be joining Manchester airport," said Woodruffe. “Having taken my first ever flight from Manchester Airport as a child, I am looking forward to relocating back to the region and can’t wait to get started.”

Manchester Airports Group’s deputy chief executive Ken O’Toole added: “It is great to have someone with Chris’s aviation experience joining us as managing director of Manchester airport.

"We want customer service to be at the heart of everything we do, and with Chris leading the recovery, we’ve got the right team in place to deliver on that commitment.”

In his role at Gatwick between 2016 and 2020, MAN said Woodruffe oversaw a "step-change" in passenger experience and a "major programme: of operational improvements. Prior to his time as COO, Woodruffe held several other senior roles at Gatwick across customer service, security and engineering.