At London Stansted Airport, we play a vital role in the UK’s aviation network and in driving economic growth across London and the East of England. As the third busiest airport serving the capital and the fourth busiest in the UK, we handle just over 30 million passengers every year, supporting thousands of jobs and local businesses across north London, Essex and surrounding communities.
Our greatest strength lies in connectivity. We serve more than 200 destinations, offering the largest number of direct European routes of any UK airport. Our extensive point‑to‑point network supports a wide range of leisure and tourism journeys, while also serving a steadily growing number of business travellers. We are seeing increased interest from full‑service international carriers, further enhancing London’s global connections. This includes twice‑daily Emirates services to Dubai and up to 15 weekly flights to Istanbul with Turkish Airlines.
To meet growing passenger demand, we are currently delivering an exciting £1.1 billion investment programme focused on making the best use of our existing infrastructure. This includes a 40% expansion of our terminal building, alongside transformational upgrades to passenger facilities and supporting infrastructure. In December 2025, we also secured planning permission to increase our passenger cap from 43 million to 51 million passengers per year by 2040. This long-term growth will be achieved without increasing the number of annual flights we have permission for, instead allowing airlines to operate larger aircraft and maximising the use of our existing single runway.
We are also proud to be the premier cargo gateway to the capital and the third largest cargo airport in the UK overall, handling more than £12 billion of trade value each year. Our cargo operations are essential to UK businesses, enabling global trade, just‑in‑time supply chains and economic resilience.
Sustainability underpins everything we do, so we are proud that when our new 14.3MW on‑site solar farm becomes operational this summer, the only one of its kind at a UK airport and capable of powering the whole campus, it will mark a major milestone in our journey to reduce carbon emissions and improve energy efficiency.
Similarly, supporting skills and future careers are central to our mission. Stansted Airport College, the only further education aviation college located on an airport site in the UK, is a key part of this commitment. More than 500 students study aircraft maintenance, airfield operations and hospitality, with 97% progressing into aviation careers or higher education. As part of our sustainable development plan, we are working to expand the college and double its capacity, helping to build the workforce the aviation sector needs for the future.
Delivering this growth successfully will require collaboration. Airspace modernisation, continued investment in skills and surface access, and policy frameworks that recognise aviation as an enabler of trade, tourism and economic growth will be essential. With the right support in place, we are confident that London Stansted Airport can continue to connect people, power prosperity and deliver sustainable growth for London and the UK in the decades ahead.
Find out more in our Pathway to Delivery report, compiled alongside Arcadis.