Heathrow Airport's continuous traffic in 12 months has reached a record of 81.5 million passengers.
For comparison the airport welcomed a total of 79.2 million passengers in 2023and recently increased its forecast for 2024 from 81.4 to 82.4 million.
The airport served 7.2 million customers last month, the first time central London surpassed the seven million mark during May.
Heathrow said it expects more records to be broken in the coming months, with an estimated 30 million passengers traveling through the airport over the summer period.
Chief executive Thomas Woldbye said Heathrow had “put Covid firmly behind us”, adding: “Supporting 81 million journeys not only helps families create wonderful holiday memories, but what's more Importantly, it is about the vital trade and business links that a hub like Heathrow creates for the UK economy.”
Meanwhile, London Stansted also recorded a record May, with 2.7 million passengers traveling through the airport.
The figure increased by 143,000 on Stansted's previous busiest month of May in 2019, and takes the airport's 12-month rolling total to 28.8 million, up almost 10 per cent on the previous year.
The top destinations last month were Dublin, Istanbul and Edinburgh, while the most popular countries were Spain, Italy and Germany.
Commenting on the news, James Richardson, CFO of London Stansted, said:
“The record numbers were boosted by a busy half-term week, which saw hundreds of thousands of Britons go on holiday, as well as large numbers of overseas visitors choosing the airport as a gateway to London and the east of England.
“We were also delighted to see British Airways return to Stansted during the month with the launch of three exciting new services which I am sure will prove very popular with passengers wanting to travel to Ibiza, Nice and Florence this summer.
“Ahead of the main summer break, we expect this month to be another busy period for the airport. We've already welcomed thousands of football fans arriving for the Champions League final at Wembley earlier this month, and now we're preparing to welcome even more fans to Stansted as they head to Euro 2024 thanks to the ten direct services available for Germany. .”
Last week, industry trade association ACI Europe released its latest traffic figures, which show volumes just 0.2 percent below pre-pandemic levels or, as ACI put it, “a hair's breadth away from full recovery.” .
ACI EUROPE: Passenger traffic “one step away from fully recovering”
heathrow.com, stanstedairport.com
