Air Charter Service has expanded its northern UK operations by moving its Manchester office into premises with almost double the floorspace. It shows a charter broker adding capacity to a regional office two years after opening it, a measure of how quickly its north-west business outgrew its first site.

Air Charter Service is a London-headquartered aircraft charter broker founded in 1990 by Chris Leach and Justin Bowman, with 43 offices worldwide. It arranges helicopter, private jet and commercial airliner charters, alongside cargo and group charter work.

The Manchester office opened in 2024 as the broker’s third UK office and first in the north of England. Air Cargo News reported at the time that it would target the region’s technology and sports markets.

Alex Sadat Shafai, CEO of ACS Manchester, said: “We opened up in the north-west in 2024, to further expand our client base in the thriving technology, sports and music markets in the region, and in those two years, we have already outgrown our old space. These new premises give us almost double the floorspace of the old operation, meaning we can push on from our impressive first couple of years.”

Sadat Shafai said ACS has arranged more than 2,000 sports charter contracts over the past five years, and that the office has helped increase its UK business since it opened. The 2024 opening cited more than 1,500 contracts over the same five-year period.

The move follows strong group results. Air Cargo Week reported that ACS revenue grew 38 per cent in the first half of its financial year, with cargo charters up 49 per cent and EBITDA up 35 to 40 per cent.

The cargo growth was supported by supply chain disruption, humanitarian operations and continued underlying demand.

For the sector, a broker enlarging a two-year-old regional office signals that charter demand outside London is being served by dedicated local capacity, not only by head office teams.

Source: Air Cargo Week / Air Cargo News