Business and traffic commentary Mar 2026

Heathrow

13 April 2026

 

Heathrow supports airlines and passengers through Middle East disruption

·      Heathrow is supporting airlines and passengers as they adapt to airspace closures across the Middle East, including a 10% spike in transfer passengers. While Heathrow has temporarily absorbed demand from elsewhere, its growth remains slower than EU competitors as runway slots are full. 

·      Heathrow saw year on year growth last month despite continuing disruption, with 6.6m passengers, as demand shifted across Heathrow's long-haul network. The outlook for the next few months is uncertain, due to the ongoing conflict. 

·      The knock-on impacts to global supply chains, including fuel, have not affected airport operations. Heathrow will monitor the situation and liaise with Government and airlines to protect passengers' journeys. 

·      Despite today's headwinds, passengers continue to get great service. March's Skytrax awards saw passengers vote Heathrow as best in the world for shopping, 3^rd best for security screening and rise five places to be ranked as one of world's best airports overall. 

·      Wednesday 25 March was the 80^th anniversary of the first flight from Heathrow, when Starlight took off for Buenos Aires. Since then, it has welcomed more than 2.9 billion passengers, underpinned British exports including nearly £300bn of trade last year alone and been focal a point for moments in British history, from the Royals to sporting heroes and immortalised in film and TV. 

Heathrow CEO Thomas Woldbye said:

"We're doing everything we can to support airlines and passengers as travel trends shift during the Middle East crisis. While Heathrow's long-haul network absorbed demand in March, the outlook for the next few months remains uncertain. I'm proud of what colleagues have achieved to quickly adapt and continue giving passengers a great service during difficult times."

	Traffic Summary
	March 2026
	Terminal Passengers (000s)	Mar 2026	% Change	Jan to Mar 2026	% Change	Apr 2025 to Mar 2026	% Change
	Market
	UK	390	4.3	1,079	2.1	4,610	0.0
	EU	2,232	11.6	5,926	5.4	28,717	2.9
	Non-EU Europe	483	11.5	1,385	5.8	5,633	1.0
	Africa	323	23.3	923	10.4	3,474	6.3
	North America	1,608	6.8	4,196	3.2	20,684	0.3
	Latin America	199	3.8	590	-1.5	2,152	-3.9
	Middle East	294	-51.1	1,799	-12.7	8,517	-0.5
	Asia / Pacific	1,116	31.1	3,027	12.3	11,354	5.2
	Total	6,645	6.9	18,925	3.7	85,141	1.9
	Air Transport Movements	Mar 2026	% Change	Jan to Mar 2026	% Change	Apr 2025 to Mar 2026	% Change
	Market
	UK	3,327	0.4	9,440	-4.0	36,957	-3.0
	EU	16,929	3.3	47,422	-0.7	209,247	1.3
	Non-EU Europe	3,622	2.3	10,542	-0.1	39,739	-2.1
	Africa	1,416	6.9	4,118	3.9	15,316	2.6
	North America	7,184	3.2	19,962	0.0	91,514	1.0
	Latin America	814	-0.9	2,394	-4.9	8,683	-6.3
	Middle East	1,295	-47.4	6,966	-8.6	31,050	-0.1
	Asia / Pacific	4,009	13.2	11,538	8.1	44,897	4.4
	Total	38,596	0.6	112,382	-0.4	477,403	0.7
	Cargo (incl. Mail, Charter & Positioning flights) (Metric Tonnes)	Mar 2026	% Change	Jan to Mar 2026	% Change	Apr 2025 to Mar 2026	% Change
	Market
	UK	10	-93.2	43	-80.3	514	-4.5
	EU	6,623	-7.2	18,879	-1.1	73,491	-6.1
	Non-EU Europe	2,619	-16.2	7,363	-17.5	37,849	0.7
	Africa	9,489	14.3	23,849	3.2	95,875	-0.1
	North America	61,833	-0.1	166,074	-0.4	652,905	1.1
	Latin America	4,383	-11.8	12,670	-8.9	55,556	-1.7
	Middle East	10,434	-54.3	53,461	-14.4	247,045	-5.1
	Asia / Pacific	39,257	9.8	105,548	8.5	425,811	5.8
	Total	134,648	-6.6	387,887	-1.0	1,589,045	0.7

 

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