Business and traffic commentary Dec 2023

Heathrow

11 January 2024

 

Heathrow ends year with busiest ever December

§ Christmas and New Year festivities raised passenger numbers with more than 6.6 million travelling through Heathrow in December - bringing the total number of passengers up to 79 million in 2023

§ Averaging at around 216,000 daily passengers last month, our busiest day over the festive period was Friday 22^nd  December with almost 250,000 passing through the airport to reunite with loved ones in time for the holidays

§ Forward planning and collaboration with airport partners ensured that 142,000 passengers travelling on the 25^th December had smooth journeys, with nearly 800 flights arriving and departing on our busiest Christmas day ever

§ Transatlantic travel remained a key driver for passenger numbers with 1.6 million travelling to and from North America in December, as New York (JFK) clinched the top spot as our most popular destination this year with over 3 million passengers in total

§ 2023 was Terminal 5's busiest year ever, surpassing 33 million passengers for the second time since opening 15 years ago and serving 2.6 million passengers in December alone

§ The gift-giving season saw Heathrow process 133,277 tonnes of cargo in December, culminating in a total of over 1.43 million tonnes processed in 2023 - this represents more than 2% growth compared with 2022, with traders and forwarders taking advantage of our growing long-haul network to fly their goods around the world

§ Highlighting Heathrow's position as the fourth busiest airport globally, our routes with over a million passengers rose to 24 in 2023, with Boston and Geneva passing the milestone in December*

Heathrow CEO Thomas Woldbye said:

"As we move into the new year, I want to extend my sincere thanks to all our Team Heathrow colleagues and partners for their hard and successful work over the busy festive period, which went really well in terms of service and operations. By ending 2023 on a high, a strong foundation is laid for 2024 during which Heathrow will continue to grow and to facilitate the UK's potential for global growth."

*Full list of the 24 routes with over a million passengers in 2023, descending from highest passenger volume:  New York (JFK), Dubai (DXB), Qatar (DOH), Dublin (DUB), Los Angeles (LAX), Madrid (MAD), Amsterdam (AMS), Frankfurt (FRA), Delhi (DEL), Istanbul (IST), Munich (MUC), Hong Kong (HKG), Toronto (YYZ), Singapore (SIN), Zurich (ZRH), Mumbai (BOM), Chicago (ORD), California (SFO), Paris (CDG), New Jersey (EWR), Edinburgh (EDI), Lisbon (LIS), Boston (BOS), Geneva (GVA).

Traffic Summary
December 2023
Terminal Passengers (000s)	Dec 2023	% Change	Jan to Dec 2023	% Change	Jan 2023 to Dec 2023	% Change
Market
UK	358	10.7	4,243	26.4	4,243	26.4
EU	2,110	14.0	26,160	22.8	26,160	22.8
Non-EU Europe	487	13.6	5,329	19.8	5,329	19.8
Africa	309	-0.5	3,599	25.0	3,599	25.0
North America	1,612	10.9	19,961	29.6	19,961	29.6
Latin America	186	8.7	2,065	19.8	2,065	19.8
Middle East	744	7.8	8,018	15.4	8,018	15.4
Asia / Pacific	892	25.1	9,777	76.2	9,777	76.2
Total	6,699	12.7	79,152	28.5	79,152	28.5
Air Transport Movements	Dec 2023	% Change	Jan to Dec 2023	% Change	Jan 2023 to Dec 2023	% Change
Market
UK	2,787	6.1	32,367	19.3	32,367	19.3
EU	15,802	10.4	195,359	17.6	195,359	17.6
Non-EU Europe	3,573	10.3	39,884	17.9	39,884	17.9
Africa	1,363	0.6	15,537	14.5	15,537	14.5
North America	7,248	11.1	91,201	22.9	91,201	22.9
Latin America	796	6.8	8,757	15.5	8,757	15.5
Middle East	2,492	2.9	29,844	16.7	29,844	16.7
Asia / Pacific	3,728	20.5	41,138	42.3	41,138	42.3
Total	37,789	10.1	454,087	20.5	454,087	20.5

Cargo (Metric Tonnes)	Dec 2023	% Change	Jan to Dec 2023	% Change	Jan 2023 to Dec 2023	% Change
Market
UK	15	179.6	598	46.6	598	46.6
EU	8,841	10.0	96,111	-9.8	96,111	-9.8
Non-EU Europe	3,372	-8.6	40,991	-2.3	40,991	-2.3
Africa	7,978	22.3	78,613	-2.6	78,613	-2.6
North America	51,333	11.0	544,725	-2.1	544,725	-2.1
Latin America	4,554	16.5	50,802	16.7	50,802	16.7
Middle East	24,091	23.6	261,678	9.7	261,678	9.7
Asia / Pacific	33,092	22.7	357,052	7.7	357,052	7.7
Total	133,277	16.0	1,430,571	2.2	1,430,571	2.2

 

END