When it comes to air travel in the United Kingdom, many airports come to mind. However, have you ever wondered which one is the biggest? Let’s get deeper into this thought and find the UK’s biggest airport. The answer – is London Heathrow Airport, often simply called “Heathrow.” Without a doubt, it is the biggest airport in the country, not just by its size but also by the number of passengers. In fact, it is one of the busiest in the world!

About The Airport Location

Heathrow Airport is located in the west of London, specifically in the London Borough of Hillingdon. It is easily accessible to the surrounding villages of Sipson, Harlington, Harmondsworth, and Longford. It sits about 14 miles west of Central London, making it closer to the heart of the city. The location is precisely picked out as it serves major hubs for London and the broader UK. 

Size And Capacity

The size of the UK’s biggest airport is quite impressive; its surface area is around 4.69 square miles (12.27 square kilometers). To put this in perspective, it is about the size of a 2,800 football field. The airport has 60 aircraft stands and can accommodate air travel services to millions of passengers every year. Just last year, the airport served around 79 million passengers in 2023, meaning it has the capacity to manage a large inflow of travelers. Other aspects include:

• The airport currently has four active passenger terminals (numbered 2, 3, 4, and 5). Each terminal is like a small city in itself, with its own check-in counter, baggage area, security zones, shops, and more!

• It manages flight operations with two parallel east-west runways, and each is 2 miles or 3.2 kilometers long. These runways can handle the largest passenger aircraft, including the Airbus 380.

• Heathrow can manage around 80 million passengers. This implies that more than the entire population of Germany passes through the airport in a single year. 

• On average, a plane takes off and lands at Heathrow Airport every 45 seconds when traveling is in its peak season. 

Interesting Highlights & Features Of LHR Airport

Heathrow is more than just a place where planes take off and land; it’s a complex ecosystem with many unique features. Since it serves a large audience, the airport has to be tight on security and provide numerous transportation hubs, along with multiple shopping and dining options. 

1. Security: The airport has its own dedicated police force and fire station to ensure quick requirements or any emergencies. They actually have two fire stations and even a beekeeper. In addition, 107 firefighters on site are specifically trained to put out aviation fuel fires. As for the police station, it has everything that you will find in a usual station, including cells.
2. Transportation Hubs: The Heathrow Express Train provides a speedy 14-minute connection to Central London. There is also The London Underground (The London Underground), which is quite an affordable option between London and all the terminals. Along with this, there are also numerous bus and coach services.
3. Shopping And Dining Options: Heathrow Airport almost resembles a massive shopping mall. You can find everything from luxury brands to local souvenirs and cuisine from every corner of the world. Passengers can shop from A to Z, grab a snack, or settle down to enjoy a happy meal at the restaurants. If there’s still time to depart, explore thousands of products.
4. Art And Culture: The airport is known for regularly hosting art exhibitions and cultural events, making it a place for more than just travel. So, if you’re stuck at the airport, waiting for that departure call, why not explore the art gallery? The airport offers a completely commercial art gallery, so you can actually purchase pieces that you like. 

Airlines & Destinations

From London Heathrow, passengers can book tickets to 214 destinations across 84 countries. The airport serves around 89 airlines that offer flight services to the mentioned places. 

Airlines	Destinations
Aegean Airlines	Athens
Aer Lingus	Cork, Dublin, Knock, Shannon
Aeroméxico	Mexico City
Air Algérie	Algiers
Air Astana	Aktau, Almaty
Air Canada	Calgary, Halifax, Montréal–Trudeau, Toronto–Pearson, Vancouver, Delhi
Air China	Beijing–Capital, Chengdu–Tianfu
Air France	Nice, Paris–Charles de Gaulle
Air India	Delhi, Mumbai
Air Serbia	Belgrade
All Nippon Airways	Tokyo–Haneda
Asiana Airlines	Seoul–Incheon
Austrian Airlines	Vienna
Avianca	Bogotá
Azerbaijan Airlines	Baku
Beijing Capital Airlines	Qingdao
Biman Bangladesh Airlines	Dhaka, Sylhet
British Airways	Aberdeen Abu Dhabi Abuja Accra Amman–Queen Alia Amsterdam Athens Atlanta Austin Bahrain Baltimore Bangalore Barbados Barcelona Basel/Mulhouse Beijing–Daxing Belfast–City Belgrade Berlin Bermuda Billund Bologna Boston Brussels Bucharest–Otopeni Budapest Buenos Aires–Ezeiza Cairo Cape Town Chennai Chicago–O’Hare Cincinnati Copenhagen Cologne/Bonn Dallas/Fort Worth Delhi Denver Doha Dubai–International Dublin Düsseldorf Edinburgh Frankfurt Funchal Geneva Gibraltar Glasgow Gothenburg Grand Cayman Hamburg Hanover Hong Kong Houston–Intercontinental Hyderabad Inverness Islamabad Istanbul Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen Jeddah Jersey Johannesburg–O.R Tambo Kraków Kuala Lumpur–International Kuwait City Lagos Larnaca Las Vegas Lisbon Los Angeles Luxembourg Lyon Madrid Málaga Malé Manchester Marrakesh Marseille Mexico City Miami Milan–Linate Milan–Malpensa Montréal–Trudeau Mumbai Munich Nairobi–Jomo Kenyatta Naples Nashville Nassau Newark Newcastle upon Tyne New Orleans New York–JFK Nice Oslo Paris–Charles de Gaulle Philadelphia Phoenix–Sky Harbor Pisa Pittsburgh Portland (OR) Prague Providenciales Reykjavík–Keflavík Riga Rio de Janeiro–Galeão Riyadh Rome–Fiumicino San Diego San Francisco Santiago de Chile São Paulo–Guarulhos Seattle/Tacoma Shanghai–Pudong Singapore Sofia Stockholm–Arlanda Stuttgart Sydney Tel Aviv Tenerife–South Tirana Tokyo–Haneda Toronto–Pearson Toulouse Valencia Vancouver Venice Vienna Warsaw–Chopin Washington–Dulles Zagreb Zürich Seasonal: Bodrum, Brindisi, Chania, Corfu, Dalaman, Dubrovnik, Faro, Figari, Florence, Grenoble, Heraklion, Ibiza, Innsbruck, İzmir, Kalamata, Kefalonia, Kos, Ljubljana, Mykonos, Nuremberg, Olbia, Palermo, Palma de Mallorca, Paphos, Perugia, Ponta Delgada, Preveza/Lefkada, Pula, Rhodes, Salzburg, Santorini, Split, Thessaloniki, Tromsø, Turin, and Zakynthos.
Brussels Airlines	Brussels
Bulgaria Air	Sofia
Cathay Pacific	Hong Kong
China Airlines	Taipei–Taoyuan
China Eastern Airlines	Shanghai–Pudong
China Southern Airlines	Beijing–Daxing, Guangzhou, and Wuhan.
Croatia Airlines	ZagrebSeasonal: Split
Delta Air Lines	Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York–JFK, Salt Lake City, and Seattle/Tacoma. Seasonal: Orlando
Egyptair	Cairo Seasonal: Luxor
El Al	Tel Aviv
Emirates	Dubai–International
Ethiopian Airlines	Addis Ababa
Etihad Airways	Abu Dhabi
Eurowings	Cologne/Bonn, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, and Stuttgart.
EVA Air	Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi and Taipei–Taoyuan.
Finnair	Helsinki
Gulf Air	Bahrain
Hainan Airlines	Changsha and Haikou
Iberia	Madrid
Icelandair	Reykjavík–Keflavík
Iran Air	Tehran–Imam Khomeini
Japan Airlines	Tokyo–Haneda
JetBlue	Boston and New York–JFK
Kenya Airways	Nairobi–Jomo Kenyatta
KLM	Amsterdam
KM Malta Airlines	Malta
Korean Air	Seoul–Incheon
Kuwait Airways	Kuwait City
LATAM Brasil	São Paulo–Guarulhos
Loganair	Derry, Dundee, Isle of Man, Kirkwall, and Sumburgh.
LOT Polish Airlines	Warsaw–Chopin
Lufthansa	Frankfurt, Munich Seasonal: Salzburg
Malaysia Airlines	Kuala Lumpur–International
Middle East Airlines	Beirut
Oman Air	Muscat
Qantas	Melbourne, Perth, Singapore, and Sydney.
Qatar Airways	Doha
Royal Air Maroc	Casablanca
Royal Brunei Airlines	Bandar Seri Begawan and Dubai–International
Royal Jordanian	Amman–Queen Alia
RwandAir	Kigali
Saudia	Jeddah, Neom Bay, and Riyadh.
Scandinavian Airlines	Copenhagen, Oslo, Stavanger, and Stockholm–Arlanda. Seasonal: Bergen, Sälen-Trysil, and Tromsø.
Shenzhen Airlines	Shenzhen
Singapore Airlines	Singapore
SriLankan Airlines	Colombo–Bandaranaike
Swiss International Air Lines	Geneva and Zürich
TAP Air Portugal	Lisbon
TAROM	Bucharest–Otopeni
Thai Airways	Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi
Tianjin Airlines	Chongqing, Tianjin, and Xi’an.
Tunisair	Tunis
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul
United Airlines	Chicago–O’Hare, Denver, Houston–Intercontinental, Los Angeles, Newark, San Francisco, and Washington–Dulles.
Uzbekistan Airways	Tashkent
Vietnam Airlines	Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City
Virgin Atlantic	Antigua, Atlanta, Bangalore, Barbados, Boston, Delhi, Grenada, Johannesburg–O.R. Tambo, Lagos, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Montego Bay, Mumbai, Nassau, New York–JFK, Orlando, Providenciales, San Francisco, Seattle/Tacoma, Shanghai–Pudong, St. Vincent–Argyle, Tampa, Tel Aviv, Toronto–Pearson, and Washington–Dulles. Seasonal: Cape Town, Dubai–International, Malé, and St. Lucia–Hewanorra.
Vistara	Delhi
Vueling	Barcelona and Paris–Orly
WestJet	Calgary

Other Significant Airport In UK!

While Heathrow is undoubtedly the biggest, the UK  has several other significant airports as well. These airports may serve fewer routes or amenities in comparison to LHR but are equally impressive. Follow the list and get to know other players in the country. 

1. London Gatwick International Airport (LGW)

London’s second-largest airport, Gatwick, is also known for its passenger traffic. Over the years, the airport has grown from serving just 186,000 travelers to around 40 million passengers annually. 

Airport Code	LGW
Area	1,670 acres
Passenger Terminal &  Gate	Two Terminals and 65 gates
Total Passengers	40,894,242
Airlines & Destinations	50 Airlines and 220 Destinations

2. Manchester International Airport (MAN)

The Manchester International Airport is the third-busiest airport in the United Kingdom. It manages an inflow of about 29 million passengers. Outside London Heathrow and Gatwick, Manchester is the only airport that can serve such a large audience of travelers. In addition, MAN has two full-length runways after LHR. 

Airport Code	MAN
Area	1,400 acres
Passenger Terminal	Three Terminals
Total Passengers	Serves around 30 million passengers in a year. However, it has the capacity to serve around 50 million.
Airlines & Destinations	49 Airlines and 186 Destinations

3. London Stansted Airport (STN)

Stansted is another London Airport, processing over 28 million passengers each year, earning the name of the third-busiest airport in the state. It is the only airport that has significant runway capacity and operates flights to the European route network. The airport is known to welcome more visitors from Europe than any other airport. 

Airport Code	STN
Area	Spread over 68 km
Passenger Terminal	One Terminal and 68 Gates
Total Passengers	28 million passengers every year.
Airlines & Destinations	25 Airlines and 194 Destinations

4. London Luton Airport (LTN)

Luton Airport also plays an important role in serving the London area. It is the major hub for low-cost airlines, providing affordable flights to over 16.5 million passengers. The airport has a speedy connection to central London, making it easily accessible, plus it is fully wheelchair accessible.

Airport Code	LTN
Area	Spread over 2.7 km
Passenger Terminal	One two-story terminal building
Total Passengers	16.5 million passengers
Airlines & Destinations	9 Airlines and 130 Destinations

The London Heathrow International Airport stands as a testament to the UK’s biggest airport. Its vast size, impressive passenger traffic, and international connectivity make it not just the largest airport but one of the most important in the world. Whether you fly frequently or are an aviation enthusiast, Heathrow is truly awe-inspiring. 

Plus, there is more to the list! The United Kingdom has multiple airports that can serve a large population of travelers or operate numerous airlines. For instance, London Gatwick and Manchester Airport are the second and third-largest airports in the country. 

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