Previewing Aether, Manchester, the new private terminal at MAN.

A detailed overview of every aspect of Aether, the new way to travel from Manchester Airport (and avoid the regular passenger terminals).

If you were lucky enough to try Manchester Airport’s private terminal PremAir in 2019 then their new product Aether will look familiar.

That’s because this new, and luxurious, way to pass through Manchester airport is the former PremAir terminal rebranded and revamped. It’s probably doing Aether a disservice to say that it’s a way to pass through MAN as you almost completely avoid the airport, which for some will mean that it’s absolutely worth the money.

Airports are stressful places no matter how well designed. Aether is simply a way to swap money for sanity, peace and luxury. The cost is not insignifcant, but nor is it outrageous. This elegant solution from Manchester Airport should be applauded. Who doesn't want to start their holiday in style?

In February 2024 MAN teased that PremAir would re-open at some point that year, and now they’ve announced that it’s not just re-opening but re-branding. It’s not entirely clear why the rebrand took place (PremAir isn’t the worst name) but it seems to have happened quickly as PremAir still exists on Google Maps and Aether doesn’t. The change is also so fresh that some pages on their official website don’t work.

How Manchester Airport's Aether terminal works

If you're flying FROM Manchester

Let’s take a walkthrough of exactly how Aether works if you’re departing:

1. You don’t need to be travelling first class or business class to use it, but you do need to be travelling on British Airways, Brussels Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Hainan Airlines, SAS, Turkish or Virgin Atlantic if you want to use the "Checked Baggage" Aether service. If you're travelling hand luggage only then in theory you can use Aether when travelling on any airline.
2. You have to arrive at the private terminal via car (see directions below). In theory, you could walk to it, but it’s not advisable, MAN themselves suggest passengers that arrive via train, bus or Metrolink at the main terminal get a taxi from there to Aether.
3. You’ll enter Aether and be checked in by a host. They will ensure you have your boarding passes and your passports (see more below) and if you have checked luggage they’ll take that from you, weigh it and hand it off to baggage handlers. 
4. Your host will show you to a seat. Some packages include a la carte food (more below) but all include some level of food and drink. Charging points and wifi are included. There is no mention of shower facilities.
5. At the right time your host will take you through security screening, and then you’ll be driven from Aether to your plane (more below on the vehicles) which means you’ll be driven to the closest point in the correct terminal, you’ll leave the vehicle and be walked to the gate and boarded first. As Aether is at the far end of the Manchester Airport you’ll have an interesting drive around the inside of the perimeter, and a chance to see MAN from a different angle.

If you're flying INTO Manchester

1. You’ll be met at the gate as you disembark the plane and a host will take you to your drive who will take you to the Aether terminal
2. You’ll go through passport control in Aether, and a host will walk you to a seat. 
3. All arrival packages include both light refreshments and the a la carte menu. 
4. Your bags will then be delivered to you directly
5. If you have used the meet and greet parking service then your car will be delivered directly to the terminal, likely it will be there before you arrive at Aether. 
6. There is no stated time limit on how long you can remain in the terminal before you need to leave.

When will Aether open?

The plans are for it to officially open at the start of November 2024, but there is a chance that it will open sooner than that. You can signup to the waitlist on the Aether website by clicking the “Join Waitlist” button in the top right.

Update on 31/5/2024: Aether have just emailed those on the waitlist to confirm that reservations will start in three days, so Monday the 3rd June.

Updated on 3/6/2024: The booking process for Aether has now launched, with the earliest bookable date being the 4th of November 2024.

What facilities are there at Aether?

• There are two food options: light refreshments, that everyone can access, or dining from the a la carte menu on the premium packages. The menu has been curated by chef Adam Reid, of The French at the famous Midland hotel in Manchester.. There are plug sockets for charging laptops and phones
• There is wifi available in the building
• There are TVs within the terminal
• They also promise a selection of newspapers and magazines, both digital and print (the latter is a rarity in lounges now) 
• There is a designated smoking area outside the building
• There’s the option to book a “private suite” at the private terminal, with a cost of £50 per person (and a minimum charge of £250). 

Aether opening hours?

Aether is expected to open from 4 am to 10 pm every day, a wide window especially given that MAN is not a 24-hour airport like Doha, Dubai or Changi.

However they will only accept bookings for flights between a slightly narrower window: that is between 5 am and 10 pm if you’re using their express (hand baggage only) service, or 6 am to 10 pm for their inclusive packages (which can be either hand baggage or checked luggage).

Those limits are likely imposed because they will need time to drive you to your flight (around 10 minutes) and get you on the plane well before the departure time. So a 6 am flight could mean leaving the private terminal at 5:20 am.

If you pick a departure package that includes checked baggage then you have to be at Aeather two hours before your flight is due to take off. For hand luggage only you need to arrive at 60 minutes before your flight.

Finally, Aether is closed on just one day of the year: Christmas Day

Which airlines does Aether support?

There are two answers to this; airlines that support checked baggage, and those that only support cabin bags. For the latter the list is long (scanning the list suggests every airline that flies from MAN) whereas the only airlines that support checked baggage (which Aether refers to as "partner airlines") are British Airways, Brussels Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Hainan Airlines, SAS, Turkish Airlines and Virgin Atlantic.

Updated on 03/06/2024: WIth the Aether booking website now live I can see that the offering changes based on the airline that you state that you're flying with. For example, selecting BA in January 2025 gives me both cabin and checked baggage options. Selecting Qatar on the same date gives me just the cabin bag option. This suggests that whilst you could use Aether for every airline, only the partner airlines allow for checked baggage.

My airline isn't on the list, will it be added?

More premium or long-haul airlines will likely join the list of supported carriers. Qatar is an obvious choice, as is Aer Lingus with their long hauls to NYC and Boston. Both offer business class seats, whilst also being forced to use the relatively low-standard lounges at MAN (Qatar puts customers into the 1703 suite in T1, which isn’t the worst lounge in the world but it doesn’t truly align with a £4k business class ticket). As we’re still some way off the launch date for Aether I’d expect to see the supported airlines list growing.

The cost of using Aether

This is where it’s interesting. Aether is priced well if you compare it to similar facilities at other airports, in fact it’s probably both better priced and a better product. It isn’t as cheap as a lounge inside a terminal, and it’s probably not a service you’d use if you were commuting regularly, but if you’re flying out from MAN twice a year and you want to avoid the main airport then it feels like value for money

Departure Packages	Price	Notes
“Depart Express” - no checked bags, light refreshments only	From £90 per person	You get access to the Aether terminal and are driven to your plane but without the a la carte menu. You can arrive 75 minutes before your flight but must arrive at least 60 minutes before it. That’s a strangely tight window to hit
“Depart Inclusive - Cabin Bags” - everything included, but no checked bags	From £150 per person	Includes everything except checked bags: access to the Aether terminal, you’re driven to your plane, a la carte menu plus refreshments, including alcoholic drinks. You can arrive up to 3 hours before department, but you must arrive at least 60 minutes before your flight.
“Depart Inclusive - Checked Bags” - everything included, plus checked bags	From £170 per person	You get access to the Aether terminal and are driven to your plane, but without the a la carte menu. You can arrive 75 minutes before your flight, but must arrive at least 60 minutes before it. That’s a strangely tight window to hit
Arrivals Packages
“Arrive Inclusive - Cabin Bags”	From £150 per person	Includes being driven from the gate to the Aether terminal, Aether passport control, a la carte menu and refreshments (including alcohol). This package assumes you do not have checked bags.
“Arrive Inclusive - Checked Bags”	From £170 per person	Includes being driven from the gate to the Aether terminal, Aether passport control, a la carte menu and refreshments (including alcohol). Your checked bags will be delivered to Aether

You can cancel a booking at Aether and assuming you do this 72hrs before your flight then they will refund 80% of the costs, between 72hrs and 24hrs will give you a 50% refund and with less than 24hrs notice there is no refund of charges.

The rules for Aether

They have defined the dress code as smart/casual, and no “matching attire” which they specifically reference as being hen or stag items, fancy dress or items that cause offence. The reality is that you can be on a stag or hen party and use Aether if dressed appropriately, but it feels like a product that won’t be at the top of the list for group trips.

There is a smoking area, but just like at the main terminals there is a no-smoking, no vaping policy in the building.

Aeither is child friendly, there are no age limits for entry and they offer high-chairs, and child-friendly food and on the journey to the plane there will be child car seats.

Can I park my car at Aether?

Yes - they offer a “meet and greet” service which has to be pre-booked. Your car is driven to a secure car park on-site rather than staying at the terminal itself, which is likely the same as if you use the meet and greet service at terminals 1, 2 or 3. Parking there isn’t quite meet and greet (you don’t actually meet anyone, and you’re not really greeted) whereas at Aether I would expect a slightly higher class of car-handover, if you’re into that. There is no indication on pricing but expect it to be close to the same cost as meet & greet at any of the terminals.

Where is Aether?

The private terminal is not located within the main airport buildings, which is a good thing. It’s actually next to the Visitor Park, where you can plane-spot, or have a coffee at the Runway Visitor Park cafe (MAN are not ones to miss out on a revenue stream) Aether is also next to the Concorde Conference Centre, home of the one of the Concordes.

You access Aether via the same road to the Visitor Park, making a left turn just before you see the tail of the Trident that’s housed there. Drive up to the barrier, and if your number plate is recognised the barrier will rise, or if not (i.e. you’re arriving in a taxi) give your details and then can glide to the small car park next to the private terminal.

There is a covered walkway for the 20 or so steps from the car park to Aether, just in case it happens to be raining that day in Manchester.

This Google Maps pin will take you straight to the gate: https://maps.app.goo.gl/ucmFTpisq5ZJgmbB7

What are the security rules for Aether?

The same restrictions apply as if you were travelling through the main terminal or any UK airport.

Does Aether replace the aircraft lounge?

In theory yes, but this is where it gets interesting - you can go through security at Aether and then transfer to the main terminal to use an aircraft lounge (assuming you have either paid for one, or have access via your seat type or frequent flyer status). The question is why would you do this at MAN? The quality of lounges is relatively low, with the exception of the Emirates lounge in T1. With the potential opening up of new lounge(s) when T3 closes and BA transfers across then maybe, but the likelihood of that new lounge (if it does become a BA or one-world lounge) being better than Aether is low.

Any oddities around Aether?

Aether states that if your departure is delayed they will accommodate you for upto sixty minutes after the scheduled departure, and after that additional time in the terminal is “subject to availability and may incur additional charges”. This is a really odd rule, as flights can often be delayed and it’s completely out of the control of the flyer. If your flight is delayed beyond sixty minutes and they can’t accommodate you, the question is: where will they put you? I think the reality is that nothing will happen, and you’ll get to stay in the terminal.

Where it might get tricky is due to the opening hours (4am to 10pm), and if an outbound flight is delayed beyond that evening cut off. There may be operational issues around security and driving you to your car with staff unable to carry out those tasks beyond a certain time, and if you’re on the 9:40pm flight to LHR that is cutting it really fine, even if you assume that you’ll be ferried to your flight about thirty minutes before.

Aether also states that you must use your airlines check-in facility to generate a boarding pass before you arrive at the terminal. In theory this is fine as all airlines do allow this, however, there are instances when you are blocked from checking in online (on oversold flights, for example) but there is a contact number that you can all if you’re unable to check-in.

Will MAG be rolling out Aether to other airports?

MAG (Formerly Manchester Airport Group) has spread its tentacles wide. It owns Stansted and East Midlands airport as well as Manchester, and it’s CAVU division operates 24 lounges across the UK and the US, with the majority in the latter.

Airports have a passion for revenue generation but adding an Aether is a lot more challenging than adding a new lounge. You need space, ideally that can be driven to, and that means big city airports are out. Adding an Aether to say Sacramento in the US poses another challenge - smaller regional airports don’t have as much premium international traffic, and US airlines have relatively small business cabins.

So the answer on the rollout is that MAG are likely assessing it, but it becomes a much bigger challenge than building their Escape Lounge brand. 

What did PremAir look like?

Here's an older video of the PremAir terminal. Aether will occupy the same footprint, but with internal updates