Heathrow Airport, west of London, is the United Kingdom's busiest airport and one of the world's principal hubs for international air travel, historically ranking among the busiest airports anywhere for international passenger numbers. It developed from a small pre-war airfield into a major hub for British Airways and a key connecting point between Europe, North America, Asia and beyond, operating with two main runways whose capacity constraints have long shaped debate over British aviation policy and possible expansion. Its position close to central London made it central to the city's emergence as a global aviation and financial center.
Facts
Completion Year SignificanceHeathrow is the busiest airport in Europe and one of the world's leading long-haul hubs: in 2025 it ranked as the fifth-busiest airport in the world by passenger traffic and the second-busiest by international passenger traffic, and in 2024 it was the airport with the most international connections of any airport worldwide. 1 Connections
Exemplifies
Heathrow is the standard real-world example of airport slot scarcity, operating at declared capacity with slots allocated and traded under IATA scheduling rules.
Heathrow is British Airways' main hub and a widely cited hub-and-spoke example among European carriers.
Operated By
Source Wikipedia: Heathrow Airport
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Heathrow Airport
WikipediaHistory section
The airport was opened on 25 March 1946 as London Airport; it was renamed Heathrow Airport in the last week of September 1966, to avoid confusion with the other two main airports which serve London: Gatwick and Stansted.
Overview
In 2025, Heathrow was the busiest airport in Europe, the fifth-busiest airport in the world by passenger traffic and the second-busiest airport in the world by international passenger traffic. Heathrow was the airport with the most international connections in the world in 2024.
Ownership section
The airport is owned and operated by Heathrow Airport Holdings.
In Group: Major International Airports, Lead sentence
London Heathrow Airport (IATA: LHR, ICAO: EGLL), named London Airport until 1966, is the primary and largest international airport serving London, the capital of England and the United Kingdom.
Operated By: Heathrow Airport Holdings, Infobox: owner_oper
Heathrow Airport Holdings
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