BRISTOL Airport is expected to be confirmed as the fastest growing airport in the country when official figures are released later this month by the Civil Aviation Authority.

The airport saw customer numbers increase by 8.52 per cent to 583,000 in June at a time when most other regional airports saw passenger totals falling.

The total number of people to pass through the airport this year stands at 2.5 million even though air travel has been badly hit by the recession and the volcanic ash crisis.

In contrast, Birmingham saw a fall of 5.2 per cent while passenger numbers at Cardiff were down 14.7 per cent. Just about every major airport suffered a fall in numbers including Manchester, Luton and London's three main airports.

Bristol is currently ninth in the national rankings but is hoping that its £150 million expansion plan will propel it further up the table.

Five out of the first six months of 2010 saw more passengers use the airport than in 2009, with April – when UK air travel was badly hit by the Icelandic volcano ash cloud – the one exception.

Aviation director Shaun Browne said: "Demand for both business and leisure travel is returning to levels seen before the recession, and airlines are responding by introducing additional capacity this summer.

"Glastonbury also generated a large number of visitors to the region in June, with Bristol Airport proving to be a popular gateway for festival-goers. This continued growth in demand underlines the need to develop and enhance facilities for passengers."

The airport is bracing itself for a busy summer and is warning passengers to leave themselves as much time as possible.

Mr Brown said: "Passengers travelling at peak times are advised to arrive in the terminal at least two hours ahead of their scheduled time of departure to ensure all essential processes can be completed."

North Somerset Council approved the airport's expansion plans last month and the aim is to increase capacity to 10 million passengers a year.