Manchester Airport has become the first UK’s first 5G airport as Vodafone has expanded its 5G trial to the travel location with ‘other travel locations’ set to get 5G over the next few weeks.

As part of the trial, people passing through the airport tested the 5G network by downloading a film or TV boxset using 5G via a ‘Gigacube’ device, which is a portable router that is 5G-enabled. According to Vodafone, the testers were able to download content four times faster than over 4G.

Travellers at Manchester’s Terminal One were given a free Entertainment Pass on Now TV and were able to download an episode of Tin Star in 45 seconds or the whole series in six minutes and seven seconds.

“We all love to catch up on our favourite TV shows, play games or finish off some work when travelling,” said Nick Jeffrey, Vodafone UK CEO. “5G, with its fast speeds and quick response times, will make that quick and easy, even in busy locations. We are proud to be the first provider to bring 5G to an airport and will be adding more major travel hotspots to our 5G network throughout the year.”

Manchester Airport of is just one of several locations across the UK where Vodafone is currently trialling 5G with parts of Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, Liverpool, and London also testing the next generation mobile network.