Isle of Man

Communication

Located centrally in the UK, the Isle of Man is linked to its immediate neighbours and to the rest of the world by excellent air, sea, postal and telecommunications systems. The transportation of goods and passengers is speedy and unhampered by Customs and Passport Controls as a consequence of the Isle of Man's Customs Union Agreement with the United Kingdom.The Island's airport is located near Castletown, 9 miles to the south of Douglas, and handles some 650,000 passengers a year. Frequent flights are provided to and from London (Gatwick, City and Luton), Manchester, Liverpool, Belfast, Blackpool, Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds/Bradford, Gloucester, Cardiff, Jersey and Dublin. There are also daily connecting flights linking the Island to Aberdeen, Bristol, Newcastle, Southampton and many international destinations.

The Island's principal port is Douglas which has deep-water berths and facilities for handling passengers, roll-on/roll-off cars and freight vehicles, general cargoes, bulk oil and gas cargoes, and is a regular port of call for cruise liners. The Island's main sea route is between Douglas and Heysham, a modern port in the northwest of England, closely linked to Britain's motorway and Intercity rail networks.  There are also routes between Douglas and Liverpool or Belfast.

Manx Telecom Limited is an Isle of Man registered company and a wholly owned subsidiary of British Telecom. Since Manx Telecom was created in 1987 there has been a rapid development of the island's communications services. Investment has been significant. In early 1996 Manx Telecom introduced their own mobile communications service, and in 2002, the island and Manx Telecom was used as a testing ground for the next generation 3G mobile phones.