Birmingham Airport gets makeover

Terminal 1 at Birmingham International Airport (BIA) has had an overhaul in time for this year's summer rush.

The terminal now boasts a new departure lounge, extra security facilities and revamped immigration hall as a result of work costing £30 million.

More than 4,000 sq m of retail and catering space has been created as a result of the redevelopment, featuring shops such as Dixons Tax & Duty Free, Sunglass Hut, Claire's Accessories, Tie Rack, Boots, WH Smith Books and Travelex.

New security features include extra scanning facilities, while the immigration hall now has an iris recognition system.

"These new developments mean that passengers travelling from BIA now have the convenience of over 50 retail and catering outlets to choose from," commented Joe Kelly, acting managing director for the airport.

Earlier this month, the hub announced that it saw a 2.2 per cent increase in passenger traffic during June.

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