What’s On The Horizon For: London Stansted Airport

During Routes World 2024 in Bahrain, Routes caught up with London Stansted Airport to discuss its recent successes and plans for expansion.  

London Stansted Airport (STN) is the third largest airport in the UK, welcoming more than 29 million passengers during 2023. With government approval of expansion plans to accommodate up to 43 million passengers, the airport seeks to welcome new airline partners to better serve its affluent catchment area.  

With more than 190 destinations already in its portfolio, STN has experienced record-breaking growth. August 2024 marked its busiest month ever, with over three million passengers passing through its terminal. New services that have contributed to this growth include Ryanair’s 6X-weekly service to Sarajevo launched in April 2024, Royal Jordanian’s inaugural flights to Amman in March, and British Airways’ return in May, introducing new routes to Split, Florence, Ibiza, and Nice. 

Looking ahead, STN will further expand its European connections in 2025. Transavia will begin flights to Rotterdam in April, while Ryanair adds winter services to Reggio, Linz, Sarajevo, and Dubrovnik. Jet2.com has also announced an extensive winter ski and sun program for the 2025/26 season. 

Speaking at Routes World 2024 in Bahrain, Aviation Director Simon Gorrighan told Routes that while the airport looks to serve other key destinations in Europe such as Paris, Frankfurt and Munich, its longer-term focus will be to diversify its carriers and markets.  

“Stansted has a wealthy and affluent catchment of 25 million people living within 2 hours of the airport and we’re focused on providing connectivity and direct routes on some of the long-haul markets such as China, India and the U.S.,” he said. 

STN recently unveiled a five-year, £1.1 billion ($1.4 billion) investment program aimed at enhancing passenger experiences and supporting its sustainability goals. The plan includes expanding the existing terminal to handle increased capacity, improving passenger journeys, and meeting environmental targets. 

At Routes World 2024, Stansted showcased its commitment to growth with a prominent exhibition presence. “Routes World is the premier route development conference,” Gorrighan said, highlighting the event’s importance in building partnerships with airlines. 

The airport continues to promote its latest developments and route opportunities through its Routes 360 profile.