Manchester Airport Flight Transfer Centre

Manchester Airport has an airside transfer bus service for connecting passengers. The service is only available to passengers travelling on airlines who are signed up to the Flight Transfer scheme. Most are, but many of the package holiday providers and low-cost carriers are not. This means if you’re flying with a non-participating airline and transferring with hold luggage, you’ll have to collect it from baggage reclaim and go through the security process. You’ll also need to leave the ‘airside’ area and go through a security check when arriving into T1 on a domestic or Common Travel Area flight – although your bags can be transferred for you without needing to collect them.

The full list of participating airlines is (oneworld airlines and those with affiliations with BA are bolded):

T1: AerLingus, Air Transat, Etihad, Emirates, Finnair, Gulf Air, Icelandair, Luxair, SAS Scandinavian, Sun Express, Turkish Airlines.

T2: Aegean, AerLingus, Air France, Air Canada, AirBaltic, Austrian, Biman, Brussels Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Egypt Air, Ethiopian Airlines, Eurowings, Hainan, Juneyao, KLM, Kuwait, Lufthansa, Norwegian, Qatar, Royal Air Maroc, Royal Jordanian, Saudia, Singapore, Swiss, TAP Air Portugal, Virgin Atlantic.

T3: British Airways, Loganair.

You should check which terminal your connecting flight departs from, so you know where you’re heading when you arrive in Manchester. Airside shuttle buses link the airport’s three terminals for transferring passengers.

If self-transferring via the Flight Transfer Centre, make sure you’ve allowed sufficient time from your scheduled arrival in Manchester to your connecting flight. At least three hours is recommended.

Terminal 1

Upon landing, follow signs for Transfers, which will direct you to the T1 Bussing Lounge. The bus will take around five minutes and transport you to Gate B12 in T2.

From here, proceed to the T2 Flight Transfer Centre, follow the correct channel (either International or Domestic / CTA) and proceed to security on Level 2.

Once you’ve cleared the security checks, you can then carry on to the T2 departure lounge or get the bus from Gate B2 back to T1 or T3 Departures, depending on where your next flight takes off from.

Terminal 2

Upon landing, follow signage for Transfers, which will take you to the Flight Transfer Centre. Follow the relevant flight transfer channel, whether that’s International or Domestic / CTA, show your boarding card to staff operating the channel and then proceed up to Security on Level 2.

After you’ve been screened, follow signage for the Departure Lounge to wait for your flight, if you’re travelling from T2 – or head straight to Gate B2 for a connecting bus to T1 or T3.

Terminal 3

Upon landing follow signs for Transfers, which will take you to the Transfers bussing lounge.

If you’re using this service upon arriving in Terminal 3, that means you’ve arrived on a British Airways or Loganair flight, from a UK or Common Travel Area airport – so you’ll need to complete an ID check prior to boarding the bus, to ensure you have the correct documents for onward travel.

If you’re transferring onto a T1 domestic flight, you can go straight to the terminal, without needing to visit T2’s Flight Transfer Centre first (the bus will stop at T1 Gate 20C). You can complete a customs declaration at this point if travelling domestically, then proceed to the departure lounge.

For T2 transfers, the bus will continue to T2 Gate B2. Proceed to the Flight Transfer Centre, follow the correct channel for either International or Domestic / CTA transfers, then head to Level 2 and complete a customs declaration if required, before following wayfinding for the T2 departure lounge to wait for your flight.