Gatwick has claimed the busiest six months in its history, reporting an 8% increase in traffic over the period to 22.5m passengers.
Turnover was up 8.6% to £391.6m, which combined with cost management resulted in EBITDA up 12.7% to £221.6m and a profit before tax of £122.4m.
Chief executive of Gatwick airport, Stewart Wingate, said: “Gatwick’s record-breaking year is testament to the significant investment made in improving the airport for passengers, and the benefits of greater competition in the London market.
“Nearly five years of independent ownership have seen growth of five million more passengers and we are attracting new routes across the board – from low-cost carriers and European business travel, to long haul providers and emerging markets.”
The airport attributed its growth to a combination of “more planes, bigger planes and fuller planes”, with load factors increasing to 86.1%.
The six-month period included one day of 906 air traffic movements in August, which Gatwick claims is a world record for a single-runway airport.
Wingate added: “Gatwick’s success and continued rate of growth means we are now unable to meet demand across much of the year and are just a few years away from hitting full capacity, ahead of earlier forecasts.
“The capacity crunch facing Gatwick underlines the urgent need for a new runway. This time next year we will know which airport is chosen for expansion.
“Gatwick offers the compelling, credible option of a new runway that can actually be built, compared to an undeliverable Heathrow scheme and the threat of another report on airport expansion simply sitting on the shelf.”
The airport also reported strong growth in corporate travel, with one in five passengers now travelling on business. A series of new European business routes have recently been added, including flights to Strasbourg, Brussels and Paris.