44BI Heathrow 51

Heathrow leaps into record February with busiest winter half-term

•             Heathrow served a record number of passengers in February as 5.8m people flew through the UK's hub airport last month.

•             The busiest ever February half-term saw more than 2m passengers at Heathrow. Winter sun won over the ski slopes with nearly two thirds of travellers landing somewhere warmer than London.

•             Even before the leap year lift of 207,000 passengers on 29 February, Heathrow is on track to serve more passengers this year than ever before. Meanwhile, cargo tonnage is 21% up on 2023, outperforming European comparators and the global average of 8%.

•             Heathrow's departure boards continue to offer unrivalled choice. The latest route additions include more services to the very north of the UK with Loganair, BA routes to Abu Dhabi, Kos and Izmir, a new Virgin Atlantic service to Bangalore and the return of Vueling to Barcelona and Paris (Orly), in time for the 2024 Summer Olympics.

•             Whatever the destination, passengers can travel with confidence at Heathrow this Easter. Airport teams are ready and prepared to make the next travel peak another success.

•             The Chancellor missed the opportunity to back British business at the Spring Budget, prioritising short-term decisions over policies that would deliver the growth and jobs the UK economy needs. Instead, he raised taxes on aviation with no ring-fencing for the green transition.

Heathrow CEO, Thomas Woldbye, said: "It was wonderful to welcome so many passengers for the first holiday peak of 2024, setting a new Heathrow record. While we are serving more people, visitors to the UK are spending less since the removal of tax-free shopping, impacting businesses across the country. The Spring Budget was a missed opportunity to give the whole tourism, hospitality and retail sector the support it needs to compete internationally."