The post box inside the airport has been removed.

When Ronaldsway Airport was converted to a Covid vaccination centre, the post box was taken away and was not reinstated when the programme ended.

Peter Beighton, a blue badge tour guide, was shocked at the decision.

He said: ’It’s not a question of quantity of letters, it’s quality and about strategy there has to be a post box there.

’That’s a key one, there’s no cost saving because a postman has to go in there to deliver mail to the various offices.’

Mr Beighton explained his clients often use the post box.

He continued: ’I see clients writing postcards as they go along during the day and I leave them at the airport and they say "thank goodness there’s a post box here" and pop all their postcards in and off they go.’

The resident of Ramsey first noticed the removal on Tuesday last week when his daughter borrowed his car to drive herself to the airport for a flight.

He told her to post the spare car keys back to him using the post box.

’No post box, oh dear,’ he added. ’So, my spare key is now in Germany.’

Mr Beighton continued: ’I honestly didn’t give it a thought that they would have removed such a strategic post box. It’s such a strange one to remove.

’The post office said there were others nearby but it was no good in that scenario, they were too far away.’

When speaking with staff at the airport, Mr Beighton found out that receptionists were now taking ’several letters a day’ and posting them when they finished their shift on behalf of visitors.

Isle of Man Post Office chief executive Simon Kneen said: ’The airport box was removed at the request of the airport when it was closed to become a vaccination hub.

’Declining letter volumes, limited air travel and airport security not allowing people to stop outside the airport, thus ending what might previously have been passing traffic, have all impacted letter volumes.

’We do monitor box usage and access to services and based on the volumes and the options in the area, plus access limitations, we have taken the decision not to reinstall it.’

The nearest post boxes to the airport are on the main road through Ballasalla, the main road into Castletown (opposite King William’s College’s entrance) and the Southern Delivery Office in the Ronaldsway industrial estate.