Heathrow cites ‘bumper’ Easter for record April passenger numbers

A “bumper” Easter getaway helped Heathrow achieve its busiest April on record.

Almost 7.1 million passengers travelled through the London hub - up nearly 6% on the same month last year and making it the first April to ever surpass the 7 million mark.

Almost one million people flew through the airport over the bank holiday weekend, culminating in the busiest ever arrivals day with more than 140,000 passengers landing on Easter Monday. 

Italy performed particularly well, with record weekends for Florence and Venice.

The figures demonstrate recovery from a total shutdown of Heathrow for almost a day on March 21 due an the offsite blaze at the substation near Hayes in west London.

May has already delivered another “milestone moment” with the Heathrow-New York JFK route - the busiest long-haul route in the world – hitting its millionth passenger of the year in record time, according to the airport.

While the Easter getaway produced “bumper” passenger numbers, Heathrow reported improving passenger service levels.

The airport has recorded the highest departure punctuality out of all major European hubs in the year to date, with 99% of bags onto their flights as expected in April and 97% of passengers waiting less than five minutes at security. 

Chief executive Thomas Woldbye said: “Last month showed Heathrow at its very best – we successfully navigated our busiest April ever whilst our service levels took a further leap forward. 

“We’re providing great value for our passengers and I’m proud of what we’ve achieved in collaboration with our Team Heathrow partners so far this year. 

“We’re now firmly focused on the busy summer ahead and work is underway across the airport to ensure we continue delivering for our customers.”