London Southend Airport is showing no signs of slowing down and remains the UK’s fastest-growing airport after passenger numbers more than tripled during the first three months of 2026.
New figures released by the UK Civil Aviation Authority reveal that traffic at London Southend has surged by 247%, compared to the same period last year.
To compare, London’s five other airports recorded a collective growth of just 1.5% in the year’s first quarter, while passenger numbers across the whole of the UK recorded an increase of only 2.3%.
And the airport’s success isn’t just about attracting more passengers, it’s also continuing to deliver on punctuality. In fact, London Southend has improved its standings in the UK airport on-time performance table, climbing to third spot in the country, whilst retaining its position as the #1 airport in London in terms of on-time performance in the first three months of 2026.
Jude Winstanley, CEO of London Southend Airport, said: “These latest figures show that more and more passengers are discovering what makes London Southend different. We’re growing faster than any other airport in the UK while continuing to improve our national punctuality performance, which is a testament to the incredible work of our teams across the airport every single day.
“These SENsational statistics go to prove that London Southend is continuing its progress towards being the easy, speedy, friendly airport of choice for people in London, Essex and the East of England.”
Looking at the last 12 months ending in March 2026, the award-winning airport, which is currently the 23rd busiest in the UK, has already smashed through the 800,000-passenger barrier, and has narrowed the gap to the airports in 22nd and 21st places.
Winstanley added: “If we continue to grow at the rate we are, as well as outpacing the growth of our nearest rivals, we could overtake them and end the year just outside the top 20 airports in the UK in terms of passenger traffic.
“With recently announced new routes to Belfast City and Budapest starting in October helping to further boost our throughput, we expect to be one of the fastest-growing UK airports again this year and get close to the one million passenger figure.”
For an airport that was once considered one of the UK’s best-kept secrets, the secret is definitely out!
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About London Southend Airport
London Southend Airport was the UK’s fastest growing airport in 2025, with a 150% increase in passengers compared to 2024. This year, the airport will offer 26 destinations, with new routes to Jersey, Ibiza and Munich launching over the summer. Our dedicated on-site train station ensures seamless connectivity, with a 10-minute train-to-gate time and direct services from Stratford, London in 43 minutes and London Liverpool Street in just 52 minutes.
Renowned for sensational customer experience, we manage all key operations in-house, delivering an easy, speedy, friendly journey from arrival to departure. easyJet passengers rank us among the UK’s top airports for satisfaction and our own private London Southend Jet Centre is the fastest-growing in the country.