“We have a load of work to do now to get the airport back up and running and to build that sustainable aviation and advanced manufacturing hub.”
The airport, which first opened in 2005 and closed in 2022, was used by Tui and Wizz Air and served destinations including the Canary Islands, Balearics, Greece, Turkey, Poland and the Baltic countries.
Coppard previously said reopening the airport would support 5,000 jobs, boost the economy by £5bn and provide wider benefits of £2bn by 2050.
“Yes it’s about making sure people have holiday flights, but this project cannot be deemed to succeed or fail based purely on passenger numbers alone, purely on profit or loss alone,” he said.
“It’s got to be about what it contributes to economic growth, our ambitions, world class industries and broader opportunities with aviation.”