Gatwick hits 40 million passengers a year for first time
Stewart Wingate, Gatwick CEO, said: “To reach 40 million passengers a year is a tremendous achievement and sets a global benchmark for a single runway airport. We have grown rapidly under new ownership and the benefits of competition are clear for passengers - more choice, higher standards and lower fares."
It was Gatwick's busiest ever October as the airport achieved its 32nd consecutive month of growth, with 3.6 million passengers travelling through the airport in October, +7.8%, or 262,600 more than the same month last year.
Routes contributing to this significant growth include European routes up 9.7% and North Atlantic routes up 8.5%.
European destinations showing strong growth included Madrid +37%, Rome +22.4%, Venice +22.8% and Barcelona +13.8%.
North Atlantic destinations showing strong growth included New York +111.6% and LA +86.9%, growth to Dubai was +11.4%, whilst average load factor across all flights was 85.3%.