Manchester Airport's Runway Visitor Park attraction has gained official recognition as a tourist attraction by VisitEngland, the national tourist board.
The Park is located adjacent to the busy international airport's two runways and is home to a number of retired planes for visitors to tour and explore, including supersonic airliner, Concorde and a former RAF Nimrod military spy plane.
It attracts around 300,000 visitors every year and after an official assessment under the under the Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Scheme (VAQAS) during the summer, it has earned the right to display VisitEngland's red rose logo quality plaque – a recognised stamp of approval to assure visitors of the organisation's endorsement of the attraction.
The VAQAS report states that the Park offers the visitor an "overall excellent quality experience," and claims the Concorde classic tour is "just the right length and excellently presented and hosted".
The report also goes on to describe the facilities provided by the Park – which include The Aviation Shop and Ringways Restaurant – as a "mecca for aviation enthusiasts".
Natalie Kelly, Head of the Runway Visitor Park, said: "The main attraction is its location, which gives visitors the chance to watch the hundreds of aircraft that land and take-off every day. It is especially popular during school holidays as families look for alternative ways to entertain the kids with something interesting and a bit different.
"Having evolved from humble beginnings, the Park has become one of the most popular visitor attractions in the region over the past decade or so – therefore the VisitEngland recognition is very significant and is testament to the hard work of everyone involved with the Park, both past and present. We will continue in our efforts to improve the visitor experience and our ambition is to increase visitor numbers to half a million by 2015."
Following visitor feedback and recommendations made in the report, the Park has recently added a new children's play area and has significantly increased the number of picnic benches to 52.
It has also installed a digital flight-screen, similar to those seen in the terminals, which enables visitors to accurately track arriving and departing flights. The screen has already proved to such a popular addition that a second screen is to be installed in the visitor centre. Other improvements currently under consideration include covered outdoor shelters and live commentary.
Jeremy Brinkworth, Director of Business Development at VisitEngland, said: "The Runway Visitor Park is a great visitor attraction. Our assessor was particularly impressed by the range of facilities available and the enthusiastic and knowledgeable staff, who should congratulate themselves on this well-deserved accreditation."
The Runway Visitor Park is located next to Manchester Airport's runways, off Sunbank Lane, and is open daily from 8am until one hour before dusk. A shuttle bus runs between the Park and the airport's bus, coach and railway station.
In addition to Concorde and Nimrod, Runway Visitor Park also hosts an Avro RJX; a DC-10; and a retro Trident airliner, giving a glimpse of what flying was like in the 1960s and 1970s.
For further information visit the Manchester Airport website.
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During school holidays Concorde 'Short Tours' are often run. These cost just £5 per person and last 20 minutes. They include the aircraft's cabin, but time precludes a flight deck visit. These are ideal for younger children.
For the keen visitor, the Concorde 'Technical Tour' is excellent. This is about twice the length of the 'Classic', with fewer visitors per tour, and ample time in the flight deck for everyone to experience sitting in the Captain's seat. It includes a full technical description of how the aeroplane was operated and flown, and its development, with all aspects of the flight deck and the aeroplane's airframe and propulsion systems (there's more to it than just engines!) fully explained.
A more unusual attraction is the Nimrod MR2 anti-submarine aircraft, XV213. This aircraft served with the RAF from the time it was built in the late 1960s (at Woodford, just down the road) to April 2010 when it was retired to the Visitor Park. This is no airliner, and still has almost all the military equipment in it that it carried in service. It is partially electrically powered up for tours, so such things as cockpit instrument lights, alarms, and stick shakers can be operated. This aircraft is well worth a visit.