London Gatwick is gearing up for its busiest summer on record, with 8,846,000 people set to use the airport during the school holidays.
It follows a successful June at Gatwick, which saw 4.5 million passengers travelling through, with the airport’s long-haul routes growing by +26% year-on-year.
Gatwick’s Canadian routes performed particularly well, in the month that saw world leaders visiting the country for this year’s G7 summit. Winnipeg grew by 66.3% in June, with Edmonton up 28.2%, Montreal up 23.8% and Calgary up 13%.
Other long-haul routes that experienced significant year-on-year growth in June included Lima up 29.6% and Kigali up 19.9%, while emerging short-haul destinations Volos and Tallin saw passenger growth rates of 154.7% and 51.4% respectively.
The volume of cargo handled by the airport also grew strongly, up 19.4% in June as a result of Gatwick’s thriving long-haul network. The trend for long-haul travel looks set to continue this summer too, with Gatwick’s long-haul services expected to grow by 19.5% during the holidays.
The busiest summer days at Gatwick will be:
- Friday 20th July for departures (86,000 passengers)
- Sunday 2nd September for arrivals (88,400 passengers)
- Sunday 12th August overall (167,200 passengers)
Orlando remains the most popular summer long-haul destination, with Doha a new addition to the top ten list after a double-daily service to the city was launched by Qatar Airways in May.
In terms of the most popular short-haul routes, Nice joins the top ten list this year, while Barcelona remains Gatwick’s top summer short-haul destination.
Gatwick Airport, Chief Executive Officer, Stewart Wingate said: “Just one week after we added a 67th long-haul service to our extensive network – with the launch of the UK’s only direct flights to Chengdu with Air China – it’s fantastic to see that our long-haul routes are continuing to perform so strongly, with solid growth recorded in June.
“This follows news that £7.5 billion of international goods passed through Gatwick in 2017 – supporting 113,800 UK jobs – which really highlights the vital role the airport plays for its local community and the country as a whole. We’re currently exploring the best and most sustainable ways that Gatwick can continue to grow, in order to keep supporting the local and national economy and help Britain reap the benefits of greater global connectivity.
“In the meantime, with the summer holidays just around the corner and record numbers due to use Gatwick, we’re committed to ensuring that all of our passengers have a smooth and enjoyable experience as they travel through the airport this summer.”