Pete Downes told TTG travellers had been largely undeterred by the fall in the value of the pound versus the euro and the dollar since the Brexit vote.

However, he admitted the decision – which will come to fruition in March 2019 – was already affecting staff at the airport, which handled 7.5 million passengers last year and is expected to handle 8 million this year.

Downes added: “From what we have seen from Brexit, the effects are manifesting themselves in some very specific ways.

“In the transatlantic market, we can see some impact there but we have seen no impact to demand for people who live in the region travelling out to Europe.

“Where we have seen an impact is in recruitment. We’re probably one of the fastest-expanding regional airports in the UK and we’ve found the recruitment quite testing. We’re at full staff levels now but would expect to be [at that stage] two or three months before the peak season, not just before.”

Downes said many staff originate from the central and eastern European area or southern European countries such as Spain and Portugal.

He added: “The pipeline of people coming to the UK to work in the UK from those countries is not what it was before the referendum.”

Despite the concerns, Downes said it was “business as usual” at the airport, which has planning permission in place ultimately to handle 10 million passengers annually.

More than £160 million has been spent on Bristol airport since 2010, including £24 million on the west terminal extension. This has not only seen the entire security check area overhauled but also the introduction of a fast-track space.

The improvements have seen the installation of 10 e-passport gates as part of a revamp of the immigration hall.