Heathrow numbers up in January as airport vies for third runway

Heathrow Airport was talking up its attributes on Thursday, as it released passenger statistics for the month of January and continued its persuasion efforts over Westminster's third runway decision.

London's primary port for air traffic - and the only major airport actually in London - saw a total of 5.5m passengers through its terminals in January, up 1% on a year earlier. The airport said larger, fuller and quieter aircraft were a key driver for the growth.

Heathrow said there was strong passenger growth from emerging markets, with passenger numbers travelling between the airport and Mexico up 21%, China up 16%, Turkey up 5.3% and the Middle East up 4%.

The airport said the A380 superjumbo was behind much of the growth from emerging markets.

Cargo volume at the airport surged 2.9% over the comparative period in January, with volumes to Mexico and China both up 28% and Turkey up 16%.

"With record passenger numbers and strong cargo volumes, it's been a great start to 2016 for the nation's largest port," said Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye.

"With expansion, we'll open up 40 new trading links which will carry more British exports to the fastest-growing markets in the world," he added, referring to the possibility of the airport being granted a third runway.

The airport saw new routes boost its freight volumes to East Asia by 26% over January 2014, with Vietnam Airlines switching its Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh routes from Gatwick last year, and British Airways' new flights to Kuala Lumpur contributing.

That trend was set to continue, with Garuda Indonesia preparing to move its UK operations from Gatwick in March. It would be the UK's first non-stop route to Jakarta.

Heathrow was also talking up its green credentials, as part its public battle against Gatwick in the race to be awarded London's next runway.

It said it had reduced emissions by 16% over five years, and claimed to be the only airport globally to have signed up to the Paris Pledge on climate change.

"We'll help the government rebalance our economy and build a better Britain. The Prime Minister can say yes and we will deliver," exclaimed Holland-Kaye.

The operators of both Heathrow and Gatwick had been engaged in a public relations battle in the capital for some time, with both taking out full-page newspaper advertisements in attempts sway both the public and Westminster in their favour.

In December, David Cameron told the press there would now be no decision on London's next runway until at least this summer, despite already delaying it a number of times and previously promising a decision by the end of the year.

Heathrow currently operated with two runways concurrently, while Gatwick remained the world's busiest single-runway airport.