The number of passengers passing through UK airports has exceeded the pre-recession peak, according to a new market update by market researcher Key Note, but the numbers travelling on holiday flights has fallen sharply.
Scheduled traffic rose 23% between 2010 and 2014, but charter traffic was down 22%.
The rise in scheduled traffic boosted the overall financial performance of major UK airlines, according to the report, with the combined revenue growing 33.7%.
It said airlines’ fortunes had also been boosted by falling oil prices and the recent reductions in air passenger duty for long-haul passengers as well as for children.
"These developments have come alongside what is a generally improving economic climate in the UK, with rising disposable incomes, low inflation and falling unemployment witnessed, which in turn has allowed for a greater number of consumers spending higher sums of money on holidays and travel in general, giving a welcome boost to airlines and the overall market concerned with air transportation," said the Airlines report.
Key Note forecasts that passengers will grow by a further 15.3% between 2015 and 2019, ‘bringing a considerable boost to the revenue of UK-based airlines’.
