More than one million passengers taking took to the skies from Heathrow in the last 10 days, the busiest consecutive period for departures at the airport since Christmas 2019. Top destinations so far this summer are New York, Los Angeles, and Dubai, as the getaway gets off to a strong start.
This is the first summer Heathrow has been fully operational - with all four terminals welcoming passengers and both runways open - since before the pandemic. An estimated 13 million people are expected to travel in and out of the airport between July and September.
The UK's biggest airport has now hired an additional 1,300 recruits with most of the new employees working in security, which now has the same capacity as summer 2019. Currently, 80 per cent of passengers are estimated to clear security within 20 minutes or less.
However, airport data shows that at least 60 per cent of bags rejected at security checkpoints are subjected to time-consuming hand searches because passengers haven’t removed all of their liquids before screening. Even when all security lanes are open and fully resourced, these additional checks slow down the flow through security for all passengers.
In July alone, passengers are estimated to have spent an extra 2.1 million minutes more in security at Heathrow because of leaving liquids packed in carry-on bags instead of placing all liquids into a sealed plastic bag. We have dedicated teams of people at all security checkpoints to assist passengers with any queries they may have before screening.
Heathrow chief operating officer Emma Gilthorpe said: “My colleagues and I are thrilled to welcome so many passengers back to Heathrow again after two years of Covid cancellations and empty terminal buildings. The pandemic has been rough on the travel sector, but as we emerge and ramp-up operations, everyone at Heathrow is working hard to get you on your journeys.
We’re focussed on getting back to giving you the excellent service you expect every time you travel, and by following our top tips – including ensuring liquids are packed correctly, you arrive on time and you have the correct travel documents – you can help us get you into holiday mode this summer.”
In recent weeks the airport has struggled to cope but a cap on daily departing passenger numbers is already resulting in better, more reliable journeys for passengers. There has already been an improvement in punctuality, shorter waits for bags to be delivered to reclaim halls and fewer cancelled flights.
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