London City Airport saw its busiest month ever in July, teeing it up to hit five million annual passengers for the first time in its history.
490,819 passengers either arrived at, or departed from, the east London airport last month. That's a 4% rise on passengers in July 2018.
The growth in passenger numbers is in no small part due to an increase in the airport's leisure routes. British Airways, for example, started a new route to Split in Croatia, in June. LOT Polish Airlines is also running new routes to Budapest, Warsaw and Vilnius.
Existing Greek island routes, such as Skiathos and Mykonos, have also enjoyed a steep rise in holidaying passengers (51% and 39% year-on-year respectively) — hinting that the airport is edging further away from its 'businessy' reputation.
Says Richard Hill, Chief Commercial Officer at London City Airport:
The boost in numbers during July reflects an ongoing trend towards welcoming more leisure travellers, including East Londoners and their families.
The airport is currently undergoing a £500m regeneration project, due for completion in 2022.
Heathrow Airport — London's busiest — sees 80 million passengers each year.