September was the first month since February 2020 that Heathrow exceeded monthly 2019 traffic levels, new figures show.
The London hub attracted seven million passengers last month, a rise of 22%.
Chief executive John Holland-Kaye will hand over to Thomas Woldbye (left) on October 18 after almost a decade in charge.
His tenure saw Heathrow develop a plan to for expansion with a third runway, which was backed by the Airports Commission and by a cross-party majority in Parliament.
Holland-Kaye has led Heathrow to recover faster than all of its major EU competitors following the pandemic.
He said: “It has been a privilege to lead the very talented team which in less than a decade transformed Heathrow into a hub airport that the whole nation can be proud of.
“We have built a solid legacy for my successor – Heathrow is now a customer service business with a clear path to net zero by 2050 and a plan to grow and to connect all of Britain to global growth. “
Former Copenhagen airport boss Woldbye, head of the Danish airport since 2011, was announced as successor to Holland-Kaye in June.