London Stansted has achieved a record-breaking milestone in 2025, welcoming more than 30 million passengers for the first time in its history. This marks the busiest year the airport has ever experienced, reflecting both increased demand and strategic expansion.
Throughout the year, the airport recorded sixteen days with over 100,000 passengers, a notable rise from ten such days in 2024. December alone saw 2.26 million passengers, a 1.6% increase on the same period the previous year. High passenger numbers during the festive season were driven by the airport’s wide selection of more than 200 destinations, which offered convenience and competitive pricing to both domestic travellers and international visitors using Stansted as a gateway to London and the east of England.
Dublin and Istanbul emerged as the most popular destinations, each handling nearly one million passengers. Edinburgh remained the third most frequented route. Turkey has become one of the top countries for passenger travel from the airport, joining Spain and Italy in the leading positions, following Poland’s decline in popularity. Turkish Airlines is scheduled to operate fifteen weekly flights to Istanbul starting in March, providing access to over 350 onward destinations across Asia, Africa, and Australia.
During 2025, Stansted made progress on several infrastructure and sustainability projects. The airport opened a new domestic arrivals building and began installing advanced security technology that allows passengers to keep large electrical items and liquids in hand luggage. Work also started on a solar farm designed to meet the airport’s electricity needs and support its target of net zero carbon operations by 2038. The solar project is due to be completed in the coming months.
Gareth Powell, Managing Director of London Stansted, commented: “It was a really successful year for London Stansted in 2025, the busiest year in our history as we welcomed a record-breaking 30m passengers in a 12-month period for the very first time. We have built real momentum behind our vision for Stansted and, given the strong economic performance of our region, our available runway capacity and investment in new facilities, the airport’s future is looking very bright.
“The strong passenger growth during 2025 was driven by many of our airline partners increasing capacity, adding more seats and choice of destinations, particularly Ryanair, Pegasus and Jet2.com, and we’re confident we will continue to grow passenger numbers and provide even more choice of airlines and destinations in the year ahead.
“The fact we are the airport of choice for an ever-increasing number of passengers is great testament to the hard work and dedication of our colleagues and airport partners, as we strive to deliver the best possible airport experience each and every day.
“As we look to the future, we were delighted to last month receive the green light to increase our annual passenger limit to 51m, which paves the way for us to make best use of the existing single runway and grow passenger volumes towards the new limit over the next two decades.”
The airport has secured planning permission to raise its annual passenger limit to 51 million, supporting long-term growth while maximising the capacity of its single runway. Stansted is now the third busiest airport in London and the fourth busiest in the UK.
As a hub for short-haul European travel, the airport serves more scheduled European connections than any other UK airport, alongside twice-daily flights to Dubai with Emirates, offering access to a global network of more than 150 destinations. Stansted is also a major cargo centre, moving over 220,000 tonnes of goods each year, including shipments to the Far East and the USA.
The airport continues to maintain high standards for sustainability and employment. Over 12,000 staff are employed across 200 companies, making it the largest single-site employer in the East of England. Stansted has been carbon neutral at Level 3+ since 2018, sources all electricity from renewable sources, and diverts 100% of its waste from landfill while recycling more than 75%. The solar farm planned for 2026 will contribute further to its goal of net zero emissions by 2038.
