Stansted: London airport reports busiest day of the year as Coronation boosts traffic to 2.4m
London Stansted saw its busiest month since September as 2.4m passengers passed through over April, up 16 per cent on the previous year, with Coronation guests boosting traffic.
The airport also registered its busiest day of the year, seeing 87,000 guests pass through the terminal on Easter Monday.
April saw the royal ceremony bolster a recent uptick in travel demand, which has seen the aviation sector close in on pre-pandemic levels and boost profit expectations for the year.
Passenger journeys were also aided by a strong security performance, which helped 98 per cent of passengers pass through security in 15 minutes or less over the period.
Gareth Powell, London Stansted’s Managing Director, said: “I’m delighted we were able to offer our passengers a really smooth airport experience in April, particularly during the very busy Easter holidays.”
“April was our busiest month since September last year, and we expect demand to continue to rise as we head towards what could be the airport’s busiest summer ever, so our hard work is on-going to ensure we are fully prepared.
He added that the airport had successfully delivered a “huge logistical operation” when welcoming heads of state for the coronation.
The airport has more direct flights to European destinations than any other in the UK, and cashed in on higher bookings as passengers top three destinations over the month were Spain, Italy and Germany.
The busiest routes were Dublin, Istanbul and Edinburgh.
The total number of passengers that have passed through the airport in since April last year now stands at 25.8 million, an increase of 111 per cent on the previous year’s total.