Gatwick’s chief executive is spearheading a drive into the long-haul market as the UK’s second biggest hub seeks to muscle in on its larger rival Heathrow.
Referring to the Sussex hub’s growing route offerings, Stewart Wingate said “the proof of the pudding is in the eating… You can see us developing our long haul network, which is really substantial and growing.”
Wingate pointed to a string of recent deals with airlines including India’s flag carrier Air India, Saudia, Air Mauritius and three major Chinese carriers.
“Certainly, as we look to the future, one of the areas that’s important for us to grow is the long haul connections, because it adds competition and choice for passengers,” he said.
“It also puts in place very lucrative routes for the economic activity at both ends, and typically long haul carriers tend to fly larger planes with more passengers.”
Such a push into the long-haul market represents a potential challenge to the UK’s biggest airport, Heathrow and comes as Gatwick presses ahead with a string of infrastructure improvements, including £2.2bn proposals for a second runway.
“We’ve very much taken the view that we are competing with Heathrow and competing with all of the other European major airports as well. I think often it’s forgotten that Gatwick is one of the top ten European airports in its own right… So we’re a serious player across Europe.” Wingate told City A.M.
Paul Griffiths, the boss of Dubai Airports and himself a former chief of Gatwick, said last week that Heathrow’s long-running struggle to build a third runway meant it had lost its status as a global transport hub.
His comments came after a challenging period for Heathrow, which has struggled to tame a mounting debt pile and only recently turned its first profit since the pandemic.
Some 44m travellers are expected to pass through its gates this year, with a return to pre-pandemic levels in 2025.
The biggest shortfall has been in long-haul flights to North America, a gap Gatwick is seeking to plug through its focus on Asian airlines.
Wingate though is confident more capacity, via the airport’s investment in infrastructure, will bring in more flyers. “We wouldn’t have put all of this effort in if we didn’t believe that the demand was there,” he said.