Long queues, cancellations and luggage problems have plagued Heathrow Airport since the travel sector’s comeback from coronavirus restrictions. Bloomberg
Long queues, cancellations and luggage problems have plagued Heathrow Airport since the travel sector’s comeback from coronavirus restrictions. Bloomberg
The airport has struggled to cope with a volume of more than 100,000 departing passengers a day, with bags arriving late, queues snaking through terminals and flights being cancelled at the 11th hour. Reuters
The airport has struggled to cope with a volume of more than 100,000 departing passengers a day, with bags arriving late, queues snaking through terminals and flights being cancelled at the 11th hour. Reuters
Travelling through Heathrow has been a dire experience for some of late. AP
Travelling through Heathrow has been a dire experience for some of late. AP
Suitcases uncollected at Heathrow's Terminal 3 baggage reclaim. AFP
Suitcases uncollected at Heathrow's Terminal 3 baggage reclaim. AFP
There is a shortage of staff after many people were laid off during the pandemic. AP
There is a shortage of staff after many people were laid off during the pandemic. AP
Heathrow rejects the accusation of having failed to prepare, saying it started recruiting extra staff last November. AP
Heathrow rejects the accusation of having failed to prepare, saying it started recruiting extra staff last November. AP
Baggage piles up outside Terminal 2 at Heathrow in June. Baggage issues have bedevilled the airport, with a combination of staff shortages and malfunctioning automated baggage handling systems contributing to the mayhem. Reuters
Baggage piles up outside Terminal 2 at Heathrow in June. Baggage issues have bedevilled the airport, with a combination of staff shortages and malfunctioning automated baggage handling systems contributing to the mayhem. Reuters
One traveller shows his disappointment while waiting in a long queue to pass through a security check in June. Getty Images
One traveller shows his disappointment while waiting in a long queue to pass through a security check in June. Getty Images
Passengers queue to check in at Terminal 5. Bloomberg
Passengers queue to check in at Terminal 5. Bloomberg
A queue snakes through the airport. Getty Images
A queue snakes through the airport. Getty Images
A waiting passenger decides to get some sleep in Terminal 5. Reuters
A waiting passenger decides to get some sleep in Terminal 5. Reuters
Long queues form through a terminal. PA
Long queues form through a terminal. PA
A crowded check in area in Terminal 2 in April. Heathrow rejects the accusation of having failed to prepare, saying it started recruiting months ago. PA
A crowded check in area in Terminal 2 in April. Heathrow rejects the accusation of having failed to prepare, saying it started recruiting months ago. PA
A dejected looking passenger queues for check-in ahead of the Easter Bank Holiday weekend at Heathrow in April. Reuters
A dejected looking passenger queues for check-in ahead of the Easter Bank Holiday weekend at Heathrow in April. Reuters
People queuing to go through security at Heathrow. PA
People queuing to go through security at Heathrow. PA
Queues at arrivals in Heathrow in March. Photo: Sven Kili / Twitter
Queues at arrivals in Heathrow in March. Photo: Sven Kili / Twitter

Business

Aviation

Heathrow reclaims title of Europe's busiest hub airport

About 5.8 million passengers travelled through the London airport in September

Paul Carey
Paul Carey

October 11, 2022

  • English
  • Arabic

Heathrow has said it regained its status as Europe’s busiest hub airport during the summer.

About 5.8 million passengers travelled through the London airport in September, more than rivals in cities such as Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Madrid.

The figure was 15 per cent lower than the total for the same month in 2019, before the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Last year, Heathrow said it had gone from being Europe’s busiest airport in 2019 to number 10 on the list.

It blamed its fall in the rankings on the UK’s coronavirus travel restrictions.

Those curbs were lifted in March and Heathrow said it recorded more passengers than other European hub airport between July and September.

But the airport said the outlook for future demand “remains uncertain” because of “growing economic headwinds, a new wave of Covid and the escalating situation in Ukraine”.

“However, we expect peak days at Christmas to be very busy," it said.

The airport said last week that it was lifting a cap on passenger numbers put in place to limit disruption due to staff shortages, in a move that offered airlines the opportunity to meet market demand.

The cap will be lifted on October 29.

Decades of flight from at Heathrow - in pictures

Heathrow Airport in London, the UK's busiest, has been a travel hub for decades. Here The National takes a look back at Heathrow through the years. All photos: Getty Images
Heathrow Airport in London, the UK's busiest, has been a travel hub for decades. Here The National takes a look back at Heathrow through the years. All photos: Getty Images
An Airco De Havilland biplane of the British airline, Aircraft Transport and Travel Limited, about to leave on the company’s inaugural flight from Hounslow Heath Aerodrome, later known as Heathrow, to Le Bourget, Paris, in August 1919
An Airco De Havilland biplane of the British airline, Aircraft Transport and Travel Limited, about to leave on the company’s inaugural flight from Hounslow Heath Aerodrome, later known as Heathrow, to Le Bourget, Paris, in August 1919
Waterlogged runways at London Airport - Heathrow's original name - one week before it became Britain's main aerial gateway to the US in 1946
Waterlogged runways at London Airport - Heathrow's original name - one week before it became Britain's main aerial gateway to the US in 1946
The new BOAC maintenance headquarters at London Airport circa 1955
The new BOAC maintenance headquarters at London Airport circa 1955
The air traffic control room at the airport's new terminal in 1955
The air traffic control room at the airport's new terminal in 1955
US film star Marilyn Monroe with her husband, playwright Arthur Miller, after arriving at the airport in July 1956
US film star Marilyn Monroe with her husband, playwright Arthur Miller, after arriving at the airport in July 1956
An aerial view showing the runways in 1958
An aerial view showing the runways in 1958
The arrivals and departures board in 1960
The arrivals and departures board in 1960
A new airport gift shop, selling items by Chanel, Wedgwood and Pringle of Scotland, in 1961
A new airport gift shop, selling items by Chanel, Wedgwood and Pringle of Scotland, in 1961
The Queen's Building and the No. 1 Building Europa at Heathrow in 1965
The Queen's Building and the No. 1 Building Europa at Heathrow in 1965
The Beatles leave Heathrow for Salzburg in Austria, to resume filming of the movie Help!, in 1965
The Beatles leave Heathrow for Salzburg in Austria, to resume filming of the movie Help!, in 1965
Passenger terminal gates at Heathrow in 1966
Passenger terminal gates at Heathrow in 1966
Keith Granville, managing director of BOAC, holding up a model of the Boeing 747 jet, with the new aircraft hangars under construction in the background, at Heathrow in 1969
Keith Granville, managing director of BOAC, holding up a model of the Boeing 747 jet, with the new aircraft hangars under construction in the background, at Heathrow in 1969
An aerial view of Heathrow in 1970
An aerial view of Heathrow in 1970
Passengers boarding the first BOAC Jumbo Jet 747 used for a commercial flight, from London Heathrow to New York, in 1971
Passengers boarding the first BOAC Jumbo Jet 747 used for a commercial flight, from London Heathrow to New York, in 1971
Passengers going through the departure lounge at Heathrow in 1973
Passengers going through the departure lounge at Heathrow in 1973
Concorde takes off from Heathrow on her first commercial flight for British Airways in 1976
Concorde takes off from Heathrow on her first commercial flight for British Airways in 1976
Men at work finalising the Heathrow Central underground station before its opening in 1977
Men at work finalising the Heathrow Central underground station before its opening in 1977
Queen Elizabeth II passing though the Tube gates at Heathrow Central station on its opening in 1977
Queen Elizabeth II passing though the Tube gates at Heathrow Central station on its opening in 1977
An aerial view of Heathrow in 1978
An aerial view of Heathrow in 1978
Passengers waiting near a departures board in 1979
Passengers waiting near a departures board in 1979
Holidaymakers waiting in the departure lounge at Terminal 3 of Heathrow in 1981
Holidaymakers waiting in the departure lounge at Terminal 3 of Heathrow in 1981
British Airways employees protesting at Heathrow in 1984
British Airways employees protesting at Heathrow in 1984
Passengers and staff observe a silence in Heathrow's Terminal One to mark the beginning of the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997
Passengers and staff observe a silence in Heathrow's Terminal One to mark the beginning of the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997
Rower Steve Redgrave at Heathrow with daughters Sophie and Natalie and son Zak after returning from the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games with his gold medal
Rower Steve Redgrave at Heathrow with daughters Sophie and Natalie and son Zak after returning from the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games with his gold medal
Spectators watch the last Concorde land at Heathrow in 2003
Spectators watch the last Concorde land at Heathrow in 2003
Fans surround the coach carrying the England rugby team at Heathrow, as they arrived from Sydney after winning the World Cup in 2003
Fans surround the coach carrying the England rugby team at Heathrow, as they arrived from Sydney after winning the World Cup in 2003
Heathrow's Terminal 2 in 2004
Heathrow's Terminal 2 in 2004
Passengers queue to check in at Terminal 1 of Heathrow Airport during the Christmas 2006 and New Year period
Passengers queue to check in at Terminal 1 of Heathrow Airport during the Christmas 2006 and New Year period
Passengers wait at Terminal 1 on August 10, 2006, after airport security was raised to critical when a terrorist plot to blow up planes in mid-flight from the UK to the US was disrupted by police
Passengers wait at Terminal 1 on August 10, 2006, after airport security was raised to critical when a terrorist plot to blow up planes in mid-flight from the UK to the US was disrupted by police
Planes queueing to take off at Heathrow in 2007
Planes queueing to take off at Heathrow in 2007
The new Terminal 5 at Heathrow in 2008
The new Terminal 5 at Heathrow in 2008
Aircraft at Heathrow Airport in front of the London skyline in 2016
Aircraft at Heathrow Airport in front of the London skyline in 2016
Members of Team GB arrive from Rio de Janeiro at Heathrow, after returning from the 2016 Olympics, which saw Great Britain's strongest performance at the Games in over a century
Members of Team GB arrive from Rio de Janeiro at Heathrow, after returning from the 2016 Olympics, which saw Great Britain's strongest performance at the Games in over a century
A composite photo shows planes taking off from Heathrow in November 2016. Forty-two planes were captured between 10.17am and 11.17am and a montage was created from those single images
A composite photo shows planes taking off from Heathrow in November 2016. Forty-two planes were captured between 10.17am and 11.17am and a montage was created from those single images
Items are arranged during an auction preview at Heathrow in 2018. The contents of Terminal 1, which closed in 2015, were being sold
Items are arranged during an auction preview at Heathrow in 2018. The contents of Terminal 1, which closed in 2015, were being sold
An airline passenger wearing a face mask pushes her bags through Heathrow's Terminal 5 during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020
An airline passenger wearing a face mask pushes her bags through Heathrow's Terminal 5 during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020
British Airways employees welcome Olympians returning from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021
British Airways employees welcome Olympians returning from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021
Travellers wait in a long queue to pass through the security check in 2022
Travellers wait in a long queue to pass through the security check in 2022

The airport said the passenger cap helped to balance supply and demand, as numbers dipped in July when passengers began to exceed capacity, leading to long queues and lost baggage as the lack of staff took a toll.

The cap led to disagreement with airlines, including Emirates, over demands to reduce flights.

The number of people leaving Europe’s biggest airport has been capped at 100,000 a day since July.

The airport said today: "Resource levels across the airport, airlines and their ground handlers have been increasing and we have now removed the cap.

"We are working with our airline partners to develop a more targeted mechanism, which protects passenger service during peak periods."

Heathrow said its focus in the next 12 months was to get capacity, service levels and resilience back to pre-pandemic levels.

“Heathrow has grown more in the past 12 months than any airport in Europe and we’ve delivered a great passenger experience to the vast majority of travellers," said Heathrow chief executive John Holland-Kaye.

"While we face many economic headwinds, as well as the legacy of Covid, our aim is to get back to full capacity and the world-class service people should expect from the UK’s hub airport as soon as possible.”

Meanwhile, foreign travel from the UK nearly doubled after coronavirus restrictions were lifted, according to new research.

Travel trade organisation Abta said a survey indicates that 38 per cent of people travelled abroad between March and August, compared with 21 per cent during the previous six months.

Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer, speaking at the organisation’s annual convention in Marrakesh, Morocco, said: “The lifting of the UK’s travel rules this year unleashed a surge in overseas holidays.

“Given how much these restrictions had dampened demand, it’s quite remarkable to see foreign holiday taking already reaching 70 per cent of 2019 levels, which was in itself a bumper year for travel, in such a short space of time.

“We now face an uncertain year ahead given the cost-of-living challenges, but Abta’s research suggests that we should continue to see an increase in foreign holidays next year and, encouragingly, many of our members have also been reporting a high level of demand for bookings.”

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