Heathrow has busiest ever month

Britain's biggest airport, Heathrow, had its busiest-ever month in July 2011, operator BAA has announced. A record 6.9 million passengers flew in or out of the West London airport last month, up 2.5% from July 2010 Heathrow saw its all-time busiest day Sunday July 31, and seven of Heathrow’s top ten days for passenger numbers were recorded during the month. At 84.7%, the proportion of available aircraft seats filled was the most efficient ever achieved, BAA said. Total passenger numbers at Heathrow during the last 12 months exceeded 68.5 million for the first time, boosting its claim to be the world's busiest international airport. The company's six UK airports handled just over 11 million passengers in July 2011 - an increase of 0.8% on July 2010. Stansted airport had 7.2% fewer passengers last month compared with July 2010, while Southampton was up 2.4%, Glasgow rose 0.5%, Edinburgh increased 3.3% and Aberdeen had a 8.7% rise. The six airports saw a 7.2% dip in passengers on domestic routes last month, but North America traffic rose 5.6%. The number of passengers travelling to and from Brazil increased 80% in July 2011. BAA chief executive Colin Matthews said: "The growth in passenger traffic at Heathrow in July is good news for UK jobs, tourism and growth. Heathrow's unique role in linking the UK to the world's emerging markets is vital to Britain's economic recovery." Gatwick airport in West Sussex, a former BAA-run airport which is now American-owned, said it had handled 3.63 million passengers last month - a 5.9% increase on its July 2010 figure.