Stansted Airport’s played cupid for couples across the nation as 200 tonnes of cut flowers arrived ahead of Valentine’s Day.

Cargo flights have flown in tens of thousands of roses of every colour and variety from Kenya and Colombia to warm the hearts of Britain’s romantics.

“Most people think an airport is just for holidays or business, but the arrival of thousands of roses shows that air travel plays an important role in so many aspects of everyday life,” said Graeme Ferguson, cargo director at Manchester Airports Group, which includes Stansted.

Around 230,000 tonnes of freight is shipped annually through Stansted on 11,000 cargo flights to and from 200 countries.

“The airport is a key port of entry for time sensitive goods such as fresh fruit, vegetables and flowers from the major exporting nations in South America and Africa on scheduled freighter services operated by carriers,” added Mr Ferguson. “The demand for many different goods and products in the winter months cannot always be met by UK producers alone so supply has to be supplemented by imports.

“Stansted is the UK gateway for that traffic with the airport becoming especially busy around Valentine’s Day with the increased demand for red roses in particular.”