Originally Posted by
pamann
Don’t forget that the shoreline check-in has allegedly been given the go ahead. This should improve the land-side experience. The problem with the terminal is that MAG don’t seem to be that good at creating a quality experience when it comes to their airports. Gatwick has been greatly improved in the last few years. The last revamp of the STN terminal by MAG definitely made the experience worse. But they should also be commended on their gains such as Emirates and Jet2 which are success stories for the airport. Though I’d have liked to have seen a US carrier or two by now.
I completely agree with you. I think MAG made a big mistake when they decided to demolish islands J&K and relocate security there, the previous area was working fine and could have been extended without it being moved entirely. Had they done that, this would have freed up additional space in the check in area, which is what today's layout now lacks, and the whole thing just feels much more cramped now with the landslide-airside boundary having been shifted. However, I am optimistic that the new shoreline layout should hopefully improve things. I also agree with you regarding the terminal today. Although BAA had more-or-less given up on the airport towards the end of their ownership of STN, the departure lounge layout back then was a lot better and from a passenger standpoint felt more spacious. If I remember correctly, once passengers cleared security, they more-or-less went straight into the departure lounge rather than today's longer walk through Duty Free? MAG definitely have made the experience a lot worse, and it will be interesting to see what they're planning on doing next once the terminal extension designs have been finalised. Like GIP had with LGW, MAG had a good chance to turn STN around and improve it, and they have failed to do so, especially with the last £80 million transformation project. They have, admittedly done well in attracting Jet2 and Emirates to the airport, but so many others have been and gone since MAG took over in 2013 (e.g. SAS, Air India, Logan Air), so the issue RE. diversifying and
retaining airlines beyond FR and EZY etc is still very much an issue, which MAG seem to have not been able to overcome. Like you, I am also disappointed that STN has still not been able to attract and retain any of the US carriers (e.g. JetBlue), despite all of the investments into "improvements". The other thing is MAG have more-or-less ignored passenger areas (boarding gates). While they were quick to remodel the terminal, they have put very little investment into refurbishing the satellites, with the exception of satellite 1. SAT 2 for example is now well past needing an upgrade, having not been refurbished for many years.