Record year for Heathrow

The number of passengers passing through Heathrow reached almost 70m in 2012, making it the busiest year ever for the airport.

The number of passengers passing through Heathrow reached almost 70m in 2012, making it the busiest year ever for the airport.

The total figure was an increase of 0.9% compared with 2011.

The airport also posted a record month in December, with 5.6m passengers coming through Heathrow's doors, up 2.0% on the previous year.

However, this contrasted with cargo, which was down 1.3% for the year as a whole and down 3.5% on December 2011.

"The figures for 2012 show Heathrow is delivering higher passenger numbers despite a tough economic climate," said chief executive Colin Matthews.

"At the same time, passenger satisfaction levels reached record levels."

The 2012 performance was led by North Atlantic traffic, which increased 3.2%.

More flights saw passengers numbers to Brazil up 21.6%, while the Middle East and central Asian traffic was up 3.4%, partly due to a recovery from the unrest in the region.

East Asia was also up 6.2%, although this figures benefitted from a recovery following 2011's Japanese tsunami.

There was weakness in African and Indian traffic, down 5.7% and 3.4% respectively, due to airlines reducing or stopping services.

Heathrow's European traffic increased modestly, up 0.5%, but economic conditions meant significant variations between traffic to different countries.

Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain saw a collective passenger reduction of 4.5% over the course of 2012.

Greece experienced the largest reduction ( down 7.3%) followed by Italy (down 6.8%).

In contrast, Germany's traffic increased by 2.3% and France's traffic rose by 0.6%.

Domestic traffic was up slightly, by 0.5%..

Recommended

The top funds to invest in
Funds

The top funds to invest in

As market volatility and recessionary fears continue, here are the most popular funds, stocks and trusts investors are putting their money into
2 Mar 2023
The ten highest dividend yields in the FTSE 100
Income investing

The ten highest dividend yields in the FTSE 100

Rupert Hargreaves takes a look at the companies with the highest dividend yields in the UK’s blue-chip index
27 Feb 2023
The outlook for Shell shares is mixed, despite bumper profits
Energy stocks

The outlook for Shell shares is mixed, despite bumper profits

With profits surging, it looks as if Shell is on a roll, but the company’s growth from here is hard to see as Rupert Hargreaves explains.
6 Feb 2023
The top ten dividend stocks in the FTSE 250
Share tips

The top ten dividend stocks in the FTSE 250

The average FTSE 250 dividend yield is around 4%, but many stocks yield much more. Rupert Hargreaves picks the best FTSE 250 stocks for income investo…
17 Jan 2023

Most Popular

Where will house prices go in 2023?
House prices

Where will house prices go in 2023?

We explore what could happen to house prices in 2023 as the market continues to slow down.
24 Mar 2023
Will energy prices go down in 2023?
Personal finance

Will energy prices go down in 2023?

Ofgem’s price cap is now predicted to fall below £2,000, based on average typical use, from July, for the first time since 2022. We have all the detai…
21 Mar 2023
5 top UK tech stocks
Investments

5 top UK tech stocks

The UK market has never been considered a fertile hunting ground for tech stars. But there are plenty of promising companies beyond the old economy, s…
23 Mar 2023