The lack of Olympic escapades in London this summer to keep Britons at home saw Heathrow enjoy a 7.7% surge in passengers in August, to almost seven million.
Despite a heatwave and a profit warning from Ryanair over fewer fliers booking last-minute getaways, Heathrow saw 1.1% more passengers in its departure lounges in August even when the impact of last year’s Olympics was stripped out.
Airlines switching to bigger planes such as the Airbus A380 meant the number of seats on each flight rose — the average passenger count was up 6.9% to 168.9. That is the main source of growth for Heathrow, whose two runways are full to capacity.
Popular destinations included East Asia and South Asia, up 21.3% and 18.3% respectively. China was up 28.3% and India 18.7%.
Heathrow chief executive Colin Matthews wasn’t chirpy, however. “The country is falling behind its international rivals in links to emerging economies — which in turn means we’re losing the global race for jobs, trade and economic growth,” he warned. “Only a larger hub airport can put the UK back at the forefront of international connectivity.”
At rival Gatwick, about 200,000 more passengers flew this August than last, taking the total to four million. That was up 5.2% but the airport said stripping out the Olympic effect meant the real figure was closer to 2.5%.
European routes, particularly Spain, Italy and Greece, enjoyed the most growth as well as business routes such as Oslo, Copenhagen and Stockholm. EasyJet’s new Gatwick- Moscow route flew 19,000 passengers in August.
