Liverpool John Lennon Airport

About Liverpool John Lennon Airport

Liverpool John Lennon Airport is at Speke, on the south-eastern edge of Liverpool, about 7.5 miles (12 km) from the city centre. It serves Merseyside and the wider Liverpool City Region, and also draws passengers from Cheshire and North Wales. According to UK Civil Aviation Authority figures, it handled 5,611,423 terminal passengers in 2025, around 5.6 million, an increase of about 10.6% on 2024.

The infrastructure investor Ancala owns 94.2% of the airport and Liverpool City Council owns the remaining 5.8%. Ancala became the majority owner in October 2025, when it bought the 47.1% stake held by the Peel Group, which had been a shareholder for 28 years.

The airport has one passenger terminal and a single asphalt runway, 2,286 metres long, which opened in 1966. In 2001 it was renamed after the Liverpool-born Beatle John Lennon. A bronze statue commemorates Lennon, and the airport's motto, "Above us only sky", comes from his song Imagine.

How to get to Liverpool John Lennon Airport

By bus

Several Arriva bus services connect the airport with the city and the surrounding area:

• 500: the fastest bus to Liverpool city centre, calling at Liverpool ONE Bus Station and Great Charlotte Street, near Lime Street station. It runs up to every 15 minutes between 4am and midnight.
• 80A and 86A: Liverpool ONE Bus Station to the airport via Liverpool South Parkway station.
• 82A: to Widnes, Runcorn and Murdishaw.
• 81A: to Bootle Bus Station.
• 89 and X3: to St Helens Bus Station.

Timetables can be checked on the Merseytravel journey planner.

By train

The nearest railway station is Liverpool South Parkway, about three miles from the airport. The 80A and 86A buses link the station and the terminal. Liverpool South Parkway is served by Merseyrail, Northern, TransPennine Express, East Midlands Railway, London Northwestern Railway, Transport for Wales and Avanti West Coast, which began calling there in December 2025. Through tickets to the airport, combining rail and bus, can be bought from anywhere on the National Rail network.

By road

The airport is close to the M57, M62 and M56 motorways, and the postcode for sat nav is L24 1YD. From the M62, one route is to leave at junction 6 and follow the A5300 Knowsley Expressway south. Drivers coming from the south may use the Mersey Gateway Bridge, which is tolled and has no toll booths, and the airport website lists the untolled alternatives. Official car parks on site include long stay, multi-storey, Fast Track and meet and greet, as well as an express drop-off and pick-up car park.

Terminal and facilities

Services in the terminal include:

• Aspire Premium Lounge, which can be booked in advance and is fully accessible.
• Fast Track security, which can be bought online before travelling.
• World Duty Free, which offers a reserve and collect service, along with other shops, cafés and restaurants in the departure lounge.
• Assisted travel, with hearing loops at the assistance desk, check-in, security and departures. There are also accessible toilets, lifts to all passenger areas, wheelchairs, and an ambulift for boarding aircraft where steps cannot be used. Car parks have Blue Badge bays.

Airlines and destinations

Liverpool's route network is mostly short-haul. It covers holiday destinations in Spain, Greece and Turkey, city breaks across Europe, and routes to Central and Eastern Europe and North Africa.

easyJet and Ryanair are both major operators. Ryanair based a sixth aircraft at Liverpool for summer 2026 and added routes to Marrakesh, Tirana and Warsaw. Jet2.com flew its third summer programme from the airport in 2026, with five based aircraft and more than 20 destinations. Wizz Air, which has flown from Liverpool since 2004, serves destinations in Central and Eastern Europe.

History

Scheduled flights began at Speke in 1930, and the airport was officially opened on 1 July 1933. During the Second World War the airfield became RAF Speke, and a Rootes shadow factory on the site built Bristol Blenheim and Handley Page Halifax bombers. Liverpool City Council took over the airport in 1961, and a new 2,286-metre runway opened in 1966.

A new terminal replaced the original 1930s building in 1986. The old Art Deco terminal is Grade II listed and was restored as the Crowne Plaza Liverpool John Lennon Airport hotel. The airport was renamed after John Lennon in 2001, and Queen Elizabeth II opened an expanded £42.5 million terminal in 2002.