Bristol Airport pictured before the crowds of holidaymakers arrived
The airport, formerly known as Lulsgate, has been active since 1957
![An aerial view of the Lulsgate Airport in the 1960s, where only a handful of buildings were on the site. A car park is visible to the north.](https://i2-prod.bristolpost.co.uk/incoming/article9159860.ece/ALTERNATES/s1200/0_AD_BL_12-03-2024_bristolairport_09.jpg)
Bristol Airport is now one of the UK’s busiest airports, ranking at number eight in a 2021-2022 list - and it's about to get even busier. But it wasn't always packed with holidaymakers, as the archive images below show.
Since opening at the former RAF Lulsgate Bottom base in 1957, the airport has seen plenty of change and development, especially since 1997 when the airport was renamed the Bristol International Airport. The Bristol (Lulsgate) Airport was built to replace the former Bristol (Whitchurch) Airport, which had been in operation between 1930 and 1957.
In the Lulsgate Airport’s first year of service, 33,000 customers used the facilities. Originally the airfield contained a handful of small buildings but as the years went on, control towers and terminals were built to cope with demand. In the 1960s a glass building was constructed and further extensions included a longer runway and additional terminals.
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In the 1980s the airport, which was then owned by Bristol City Council, continued to grow as revenues reached more than £1 million, and in 1997 the airport changed its name and a new group took control. FirstGroup acquired the majority stake and built a new terminal building, finally replacing the old building with roots from the 1950s.
An article in the Bristol Post from 1999 read: “The massive steel and glass building is currently under construction at a cost of £27 million. It will replace the current terminal building at the Lulsgate airport, which dates back to the 1950s.
“The striking new building is designed to cater for up to three million passengers a year, and take the airport into the 21st century. Owners FirstGroup believe it will give Bristol an airport it can be proud of - and help persuade more people to fly from it rather than Heathrow or Gatwick.
“The new building has more check-in desks, more shops, restaurants and facilities for business travellers. It is due to be completed next February and open four weeks later.”
In the current day, the airport currently has 15 airlines which fly in and out of the site, and in 2022 nearly eight million passengers used the airport, according to data by the UK Civil Aviation Authority. It's set for another controversial expansion to cope with demand, eventually enabling 12 million passengers a year to use the airport.
Scroll down to view the gallery of old images
Before the airport was converted into Bristol's municipal airport, the site was used as a RAF base (pictured 1955).
(Image: Paul Stallard)1 of 11Planes started to arrive at Lulsgate in the mid-1950s, including those from Irish airline Aer Lingus and Cambrian, which was merged into British Airways in 1974.
(Image: BUP)2 of 11During strong winds, a plane was blown onto its back (not dated)
(Image: BUP)3 of 11The glass building was completed in the 1960s as developments to turn the airport into a functional airport for the masses began.
(Image: BUP)4 of 11A car being transported by an Aer Lingus plane in the 1960s.
(Image: BUP)5 of 11