Business and traffic commentary Dec 2024

Heathrow

13 January 2025

 

Heathrow ends record breaking year with busiest December ever

§ Christmas and New Year raised the number of passengers travelling through Heathrow last month to over 7 million, making it the busiest ever December and bringing the total to 83.9 million passengers in 2024 - a record for the UK's hub airport and 3m more than the previous 2019 record

§ On what is normally one of the quietest days for travel, Christmas Day also saw a record 160k passengers, a 13% increase on the previous record from 2023

§ During the season of gift-giving almost 138,000 tonnes of cargo flew through Heathrow, culminating in a total of over 1.5 million tonnes in 2024. This represents more than a 10% growth compared with 2023, with traders and forwarders taking advantage of the airport's growing long-haul network to fly their high value and time critical goods around the world

§ In line with record-breaking traffic growth in 2024, Heathrow has continued to provide strong service, with 92% of passengers through security in less than 5 minutes. It has also continued to deliver significant operational benefits, investing millions to upgrade security lanes and resurface the southern runway, with no impact to operations despite it being the busiest ever summer

§ New York, LA, Dublin and Madrid were among the top destinations in 2024 for Heathrow passengers, as the airport maintained the status of most connected airport in the world

§ With grey Mondays encouraging holiday bookings, 2025 is off to a strong start and Heathrow forecasts 84.2 million passengers over the full year. To continue to deliver for passengers who depend on the world class hub and create business opportunities up and down the country, the airport will be investing over £1 billion again this year to make the airport fit for the future

Heathrow's CEO Thomas Woldbye said:

"2024 was an exciting and a record-breaking year at Heathrow - I'm proud of all my colleagues and our partners who worked so hard to deliver great experiences for more passengers than ever before. In 2025, our journey towards better value for our customers will continue by investing in the kind of facilities our passengers and airlines are looking for. We aim to become more innovative to ensure that our airport delivers for the whole of the UK."

Traffic Summary
December 2024
Terminal Passengers (000s)	Dec 2024	% Change	Jan to Dec 2024	% Change	Jan 2024 to Dec 2024	% Change
Market
UK	401	11.9	4,665	10.0	4,665	10.0
EU	2,229	5.6	28,107	7.4	28,107	7.4
Non-EU Europe	483	-0.7	5,651	6.1	5,651	6.1
Africa	297	-3.9	3,318	-7.8	3,318	-7.8
North America	1,701	5.5	20,626	3.3	20,626	3.3
Latin America	211	13.2	2,201	6.6	2,201	6.6
Middle East	802	7.7	8,544	6.6	8,544	6.6
Asia / Pacific	951	6.5	10,747	9.9	10,747	9.9
Total	7,075	5.6	83,860	5.9	83,860	5.9
Air Transport Movements	Dec 2024	% Change	Jan to Dec 2024	% Change	Jan 2024 to Dec 2024	% Change
Market
UK	3,347	20.1	37,147	14.8	37,147	14.8
EU	16,296	3.1	206,371	5.6	206,371	5.6
Non-EU Europe	3,394	-5.0	41,271	3.5	41,271	3.5
Africa	1,364	0.1	14,988	-3.5	14,988	-3.5
North America	7,103	-2.0	91,031	-0.2	91,031	-0.2
Latin America	882	10.8	9,149	4.5	9,149	4.5
Middle East	2,738	9.9	30,762	3.1	30,762	3.1
Asia / Pacific	3,730	0.1	43,246	5.1	43,246	5.1
Total	38,854	2.8	473,965	4.4	473,965	4.4
Cargo (Metric Tonnes)	Dec 2024	% Change	Jan to Dec 2024	% Change	Jan 2024 to Dec 2024	% Change
Market
UK	52	232.4	530	-11.3	530	-11.3
EU	6,694	-24.3	85,550	-11.0	85,550	-11.0
Non-EU Europe	3,089	-8.4	40,212	-1.9	40,212	-1.9
Africa	8,854	11.0	96,253	22.4	96,253	22.4
North America	55,650	8.4	624,756	14.7	624,756	14.7
Latin America	5,088	11.7	55,674	9.6	55,674	9.6
Middle East	23,798	-1.2	268,839	2.7	268,839	2.7
Asia / Pacific	34,753	5.0	408,177	14.3	408,177	14.3
Total	137,979	3.5	1,579,991	10.4	1,579,991	10.4

 

END