New Connections To China Announced While Long-Haul Routes Soar In Gatwick’s

Published on : Thursday, November 10, 2016

xian-9-111-16-pr-300x200Gatwick’s busiest ever October, booming long haul services, and increased cargo volumes illustrate the vital contribution the airport continues to make to the local, regional and national economy.

This October, 3.9 million passengers travelled through the airport, +7.1% on the same month last year, while long-haul growth soared to +22%.

These results came in the same week that new connections from Gatwick to key markets in the Far East were revealed. Tianjin Airlines has announced a new connection to Xi’an home of, UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Terracotta Army – providing the UK’s only direct route to the city.

The airline will also be increasing its existing Tianjin and Chongqing services from Gatwick to three services a week, plus providing a direct onward connection to Auckland, New Zealand, via Chongqing.

Gatwick’s growth has seen the airport chart among top five fastest growing airports in Europe, as announced this week by the Airport Council International.

In line with Gatwick’s long-haul growth, cargo volumes increased +23% in October.

Gatwick Chief Executive Officer, Stewart Wingate said:
“Gatwick’s record passenger numbers, booming long haul growth, and growing cargo volumes continue to be a vital economic driver for our area, our region, and for the national economy.

“Our long-haul services are growing right across the board. There is increased frequency on existing routes, our airlines are starting new routes, such as Tianjin’s new direct route to Xi’an – the UK’s only direct service – and brand new airlines like Cathay Pacific have joined Gatwick this year.

“This latest route announcement adds to the airport’s line up of long-haul routes which have started this year to China, Peru, Canada, Costa Rica, Nigeria, as well as the US, which will further increase in November with new routes to Moscow and Cape Town.

“The natural result of the airport’s long-haul growth to key markets is our increase in cargo, this month +23%, which is joined by strong growth in Gatwick’s regional connections across Britain, demonstrating Gatwick’s vital economic role both within Britain and internationally.”

This October, long-haul growth continues to rocket, +22% on last year.
North Atlantic routes drove this growth +44.4% on this time last year with New York +121%, Los Angeles +56% and Vancouver +32%.
UK and Ireland routes grew +6.4% with Belfast +85%, Newquay +31% and Inverness +13%.
October has seen Norwegian Airlines start its new route to Las Vegas while already this November Thomson have started their new route to Colombo, Sri Lanka.
This year has seen an impressive line up of new long-haul routes from Gatwick including China, Peru, Canada, Costa Rica, Nigeria, as well as the US. While upcoming months sees the start of new routes including:
British Airways to Cape Town
Thomas Cook to Cape Town
Aeroflot to Moscow
British Airways to Fort Lauderdale
British Airways to Oakland San Francisco
Month

Moving Annual Total
Growth
Nov-15
Nov-14
Growth
Oct-16
Oct-15
(%)

Oct-16
Oct-15
(%)

Total terminal passengers (000s)
3,870.5
3,614.9
7.1%
42,538.9
39,969.1
6.4%
Market Analysis:
UK + Channel Islands
348.1
327.2
6.4%
3,776.6
3,587.8
5.3%
Ireland
139.2
128.8
8.1%
1,568.3
1,357.8
15.5%
European scheduled
2,515.0
2,395.5
5.0%
27,957.6
26,478.1
5.6%
European charter
301.8
299.1
0.9%
2,990.0
3,168.3
(5.6)%
North Atlantic
270.9
187.5
44.4%
2,571.4
1,863.2
38.0%
Other long haul
295.5
276.7
6.8%
3,674.9
3,513.8
4.6%
Air transport movements
25,421
23,913
6.3%
278,183
266,114
4.5%
Cargo (metric tonnes)
7,807
6,355
22.8%
76,247
75,153
1.5%

Source:- Gatwick Airport

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