Gatwick posts monthly rise in passenger numbers as Britons head East

Gatwick handled 6.6 per cent more passengers in January compared to a year earlier as Brits headed east to escape the wet weather.

The West Sussex airport handled more than 2.23 million passengers in January 2014.

North Atlantic numbers dipped 13.4 per cent last month while European charter traffic was down 19 per cent. But European scheduled passenger numbers rose 12.8% and long-haul excluding North Atlantic was up 11.3 per cent.

Among European routes where numbers increased were Stockholm, Istanbul, Moscow and Copenhagen. Long-haul destinations showing big rises included Thailand, Sri Lanka and Dubai.

Gatwick said the loss of traffic to North America was mainly due to US Airways ceasing services last year.

Bosses at the West Sussex airport will soon to publish an internal report into the severe flight disruption on Christmas Eve when flooding caused a power outage which led to a number of services being axed and others badly delayed.

Additional reporting agencies