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Heathrow Leads Record Year for UK Airports With 84.5 Million Passengers

Investment plans of £1.3 billion for 2026 hinge on regulatory decisions over expansion funding.

Overview

  • Heathrow set its busiest single day on 1 August with more than 270,000 travelers and closed the year with a record December of nearly 7.2 million.
  • Heathrow reported Europe-leading punctuality in December, with over 97% of passengers clearing security in under five minutes.
  • Management plans to invest more than £1.3 billion in 2026, including a Terminal 4 refresh and a new Terminal 2 baggage system.
  • Traffic patterns shifted as North America dipped 0.3% while Middle East, Asia and Africa grew by more than 2% each, and a March substation fire slightly reduced annual performance.
  • Manchester reached about 32.1 million passengers and Stansted topped 30 million for the first time, supported by new long-haul links.