No, I am not bashing LCCs, merely redressing the balance. Legacies have come in for a bashing from some quarters over recent years, as being cost-inefficient dinosaurs, doomed to fail. It's very true that MAN now has a fair proportion of LCCs, and they are very welcome, but has wisely not fallen into the trap of allowing them to operate at below-cost rates, and ending up in legal battles. MAN operates a policy of economic reality, airlines pay a fair price which makes a return for the airport. For this fair price airlines get 24hr opening, CAT IIIB, two runways, CAT 10 fire cover, world-class ATC, excellent surface connections, opportunities to interline, and more. If they don't want all that there's always another airport up the road which is cheap, cheerful, and we'll see you in court.
MAN's LCCs are at the upper end of this sector, expanding their network steadily and incrementally alongside the Legacies. MAN has terrific strength in the diversity of its portfolio. All sectors except the rock bottom can flourish here. MAN is the right airport, in the right place geographically to serve the non-London catchment. Its also profitable, with money to invest in future development.