Heathrow passenger numbers jump by a quarter as US routes boom
Heathrow told investors on Monday morning that 6.7 million passengers used the airport in May.
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Your support makes all the difference.Heathrow Airport has revealed that traveller numbers jumped by more than a quarter last month after it was boosted by three bank holiday weekends.
Bosses at the airport said there was particularly strong demand for flights between the UK and US.
It told investors on Monday morning that 6.7 million passengers used the airport in May, as it benefited from the extra bank holiday weekend for the King’s coronation.
Heathrow said traffic was 25.9% higher than in May last year.
It said 1.6 million passengers flew across the Atlantic to North America, with the airport running 248 daily flights to the US.
It claimed flight numbers to the US have grown as American airlines have switched routes towards the UK and “away from European and East Asian markets, which have been slower to recover” following the impact of the pandemic.
We have delivered excellent service to passengers, with no cancellations, over eight days of strikes on the busiest days in May
Heathrow chief executive John Holland-Kaye hailed the performance of flights to the US as he shrugged off the impact of industrial action.
“The unrivalled choice of destinations and high frequency to cities like New York make flights from Heathrow vital trade routes with the USA, Britain’s most important export market,” he said.
“We have delivered excellent service to passengers, with no cancellations, over eight days of strikes on the busiest days in May, and do not anticipate cancellations as a result of strikes during the summer holiday getaway.”