Manchester Airport may be subject to regulation after the 海角视频 Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced it would review its 'market power'.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the 海角视频 Civil Aviation Authority said it would determine the market power of the airport - the third busiest in the 海角视频 - after it received a request from an "interested party".
If the 'market power test' is met, the airport would be subject to economic regulation under chapter I of the Civil Aviation Act 2012, which gives the CAA overriding duty in the interests passengers and airlines.
It comes after the Manchester Airport Group reported passenger numbers reached 28m in 2018.
In December 2019, the airport reported passenger numbers increased 4.8 per cent to 17.4m for the half year ended September 30 2019.
The regulator is required to undertake a Market Power Determination on airports with more than 5m passengers a year if requested by an interested party, it explained.
The CAA said preparations are "at an early stage" and will carry out the determination later this year.
It "may consult with the airport operator and other relevant parties" during this period.
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The CAA said: "[We] had not reached a view on this matter and no assumption should be made at this point whether the market power test will or will not be met in relation to Manchester Airport".
A Manchester Airport spokesman said: "MAG notes the CAA’s announcement regarding the request from an airline to carry out a market power determination assessment of Manchester Airport.
"Because the CAA has not previously carried out such a review for Manchester, it is under a legal obligation to agree to the airline request.
"We will participate in the review process and look forward to contributing to the CAA’s work programme."
The regulator has carried out Market Power Determination on Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports in previous years. Heathrow and Gatwick are currently subject to greater CAA regulation.