In the aviation industry, several metrics are used to analyze airline offerings. Whether it be the number of flights, number of seats, or seat miles. London has six major commercial airports, and according to data from Cirium, an aviation analytics firm, there are more than 215 million seats available on flights to and from those airports.
London Heathrow Data shows that at Heathrow Airport (LHR) alone, there are 105,065,431 seats throughout 2024. The airline with the largest offering is British Airways (BA), the United Kingdom's (UK) flag carrier. More than 48 million seats are available from BA, which operates a vast network of both short and long-haul flights.
The route with the largest seat offering is from Heathrow to Edinburgh Airport, with more than 740,000 seats in each direction. With nearly 8,500 flights throughout the year, this means BA operates nearly 23 daily flights between the two cities. At number two is a route that is one of the busiest international routes in the world.
British Airways has nearly 1.4 million seats (roundtrip) available from Heathrow to John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York.
The airline's operations on the route surpass 5,600 flights in 2024, averaging out to about 15 flights per day. Origin Destination Number of seats Heathrow Edinburgh 1,480,212 Heathrow New York JFK 1,390,360 Heathrow Glasgow 1,248,891 London Gatwick London Gatwick Airport (LGW) was opened in 1958 by Queen Elizabeth II. And, in its 60+ year history, the airport has grown from 186,000 passengers annually to more than 40 million.
In 2019, the airport had 46.6 million passengers fly through. In 2023, the airport still had not reached its pre-pandemic levels but EasyJet remained its biggest carrier.
Cirium data shows that there are more than 51 million available seats to and from LGW this year. EasyJet, one of the world's largest ultra-low-cost carriers (ULCC), has more than 22 million seats available. This is nearly three times the number of British Airways offers at the airport.
The airline's busiest route, both in number of seats and flights, is to Geneva Airport in Switzerland. According to data, the airline has 386,494 seats available in each direction and 2,085 flights. The second-busiest route is not far behind.
Schiphol Airport is EasyJet's second-busiest route, with nearly 700,000 seats. In total, there 4,046 flights and 685,504 seats to Amsterdam. Origin Destination Number of seats Gatwick Geneva 772,988 Gatwick Amsterdam 685,504 Gatwick Milan-Malpensa 589,478 London City Airport London city airport is one of the most thrilling airports to fly into, for many people at least.
Its name hints at its location in the middle of the city. Located right by the Thames River in East London, the airport offers great views on takeoff and approach. But because of its location and operational constraints, regional aircraft like the Embraer E195s are the largest to operate at LCY.
Embraer has received certification for its second-generation E-Jets, the E2 family, for its aircraft to operate at LCY but no airline is doing so yet. Data shows that 4,895,641 seats are available from London City this year on ten airlines. British Airways has the largest offering, by far, with more than three million seats.
KLM is the second-largest carrier, with just over 500,000 seats. Like with Heathrow, BA's busiest route out of London City is to Edinburgh. According to Cirium, the airline has 453,860 seats available from LCY to EDI this year.
The second-busiest route is to Dublin Airport in Ireland, with 341,436 seats and more than 3,200 flights. Origin Destination Number of seats London City Edinburgh 453,860 London City Dublin 341,436 London City Amsterdam 297,640 London Stansted Airport London Stansted Airport is a major airport for Ryanair. It is one of the more distant airports from Central London, located about 40 miles northeast of the city center.
In 2023, the airport welcomed more than 29 million passengers and this year, there are nearly 34 million seats available. Cirium data shows that 27 airlines operate flights at Stansted, with Ryanair as the busiest airline. Ryanair's operations are divided between Ryanair and Ryanair UK, but regardless, the airline is by far the largest at STN.
Ryanair has more than 24 million seats, and Ryanair UK has nearly 2.7 million. The busiest Ryanair route out of Stansted is to Dublin, with more than one million seats available.
In second place is Rome-Ciampino, Rome's secondary airport, used by ULCC carriers. In third place is the flight to Milan Bergamo Airport. Origin Destination Number of seats London Stansted Dublin 1,098,392 London Stansted Rome 633,740 London Stansted Milan 567,382 London Luton Airport Like Stansted Airport, London Luton Airport is located outside the center of London.
The 86-year old airport is crucial for ULCC carriers. According to Cirium, nearly 20 million seats are available at LTN in 2024. The busiest airline at Luton is Wizz Air, if considering all three of its operations, Wizz Air UK, Wizz Air, and Wizz Air Malta.
Together, the three have 8,799,549 seats available. The busiest route is to Bucharest Henri Coanda International Airport (OTP), with nearly 600,000 seats available. In second place is the flight to Warsaw Chopin Airport (WAW), with 531,780 seats on nearly 2,300 flights.
Rounding out the top three is the route to Tirana International Airport (TIA), with 516,167 seats. Origin Destination Number of seats London Luton Dublin 583,794 London Luton Warsaw 531,780 London Luton Tirana 516,167 London Southend Airport London Southend Airport (SEN) is the least busy of the six airports on the list. SEN is only served by three carriers, and the only one with consistent year-round service is EasyJet.
Data shows there are 348,000 seats available at SEN this year, 346,992 of which are on offer from EasyJet. EasyJet's busiest route from Southend is to Palma de Mallorca Airport (PMI) in Spain. The airline has 72,000 seats available throughout the year on 400 flights.
Amsterdam is not far behind, with 71,628 seats. Origin Destination Number of seats London Southend Palma de Mallorca 72,000 London Southend Amsterdam 71,628 London Southend Paris (Charles de Gaulle) 58,644.
