By EMILY HAWKINS, cityam.com
Heathrow Airport has revealed the number of passengers in March hit its highest level since the start of the pandemic.
After the government scrapped all travel restrictions earlier this year, enthusiasm to travel rebounded strongly, the airport said this morning.
The Staines-based airport has hit the headlines in recent weeks as flight cancellations have caused mayhem after airline crew shortages.
Demand was being driven by “outbound leisure at weekends and during school holidays, as Brits make the most of the freedom to travel and cash in vouchers from trips cancelled during Covid,” Heathrow said
Inbound leisure and business travel were still weak due to high Covid levels in the UK and a requirement to test before returning home, it added.
Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye said: “It is fantastic to see the airport coming back to life after two years, and I want to thank all Team Heathrow colleagues for working together to serve our passengers. Everyone at Heathrow is doing everything we can to make sure passengers get on their way as smoothly and safely as possible.”
The airport said there had been some 670m UK terminal passengers in the period between January and March 2022, with 280m alone in March.
The airport said it was “increasing resources as fast as possible,” with 12,000 new starters planned in preparation for a very busy summer peak travel period.
