UK Airports Break Passenger Record With More Than 81 Million Travellers

UK airports have set a new passenger record, with more than 81 million passengers travelling during the second quarter of 2026.

New figures from the UK Civil Aviation Authority show 81.16 million passengers passed through UK airports between April and June, narrowly beating the previous Q2 record of 81.04 million set last year.

The figures show demand for air travel remained strong despite significant disruption to services caused by conflict in the Middle East.

Ryanair and Jet2 Lead Airline Growth

Low-cost and leisure airlines were among the biggest drivers of growth during the quarter.

Ryanair carried 17.1 million passengers through UK airports, up 9%, while easyJet increased passenger numbers by 2% to 16.4 million.

Jet2 also recorded strong growth, carrying 6.7 million passengers, up 9% compared with the same period last year.

British Airways carried 13.5 million passengers, down around 1%.

European travel was a major contributor to the overall record, with around one million additional passengers travelling between the UK and Western Europe.

Traffic to Madrid increased 15%, Barcelona 11%, Alicante 8% and Faro 7%.

This growth helped offset substantial reductions in Middle East traffic during the quarter.

UK–Dubai passenger numbers fell around 50% year-on-year, while Emirates and Qatar Airways both recorded significant reductions in UK passenger traffic as regional disruption affected schedules.

Regional Airports Record Strong Growth

Several regional UK airports performed particularly well.

Cardiff Airport recorded passenger growth of around 16%, while Newcastle and Inverness were both up approximately 8%.

In contrast, passenger numbers at Heathrow fell around 3%, while Gatwick recorded a decline of approximately 6%.

Delays Increase as Summer Builds

The record passenger numbers came alongside a slight deterioration in operational performance.

Around 74% of flights operated within 15 minutes of schedule during the quarter, while average delays increased to 14 minutes.

June proved particularly challenging, with just 66% of flights operating on time and average delays reaching approximately 20 minutes.

Despite the disruption, the latest figures show UK aviation demand remains strong, with growth from low-cost airlines, regional airports and European routes helping the industry set another passenger record.

Source: UK Civil Aviation Authority