Rolling annual passenger numbers to the end of November reached 23 million, a 5% increase for the same 12 month period from the year before.

Meanwhile, international flights were up 14.5% on November last year as the airport’s carriers announced new destinations in Europe, Asia and the US from Manchester.

EasyJet announced flights to Paris, Olbia and Milan, while Thomas Cook launched a new route to Tobago and Thomson Airways added Goa, Mauritius and Phuket to its list of destinations.

Ken O’Toole, managing director for Manchester airport, said: “We are preparing for our busiest ever December. We continue to recruit additional staff to ensure we can cope with the increased demand and capacity.”

The airport has also announced new services to Los Angeles, Boston, and Beijing, set to begin in 2016, making it the only UK airport outside of London to offer routes to those destinations.