London24NEWS

Heathrow journey chaos with 90 flights cancelled and 200 doubtful as UK hit by sturdy winds

Heathrow Airport has announced that at least 33 flights have been cancelled today (December 21) due to strong winds battering the country as passengers jet off for Christmas

A spokesperson confirmed a 'small number of flights' have been cancelled
A spokesperson confirmed a ‘small number of flights’ have been cancelled(Image: Tony Kershaw)

The UK’s largest airport, Heathrow, is dealing with a spate of cancellations with 33 flights axed today and a further 200 in limbo for tomorrow due to brutal winds sweeping the nation.

Brits are facing travel chaos as they kick off their festive breaks due to yellow warnings by the Met Office and fallout at Heathrow Airport.

A spokesperson for the airport confirmed that a ‘small number of flights’ have been cancelled thanks to the “strong winds and airspace restrictions”.

They added: “This will ensure the vast majority of passengers can still safely travel as planned. We know how important travel at this time of year is and have extra colleagues on hand in our terminals to support people on their journeys.

High winds are expected during the festive season
High winds are expected during the festive season

“We encourage passengers to check in with their airlines for the latest information about their flights.

Meanwhile, P&O Ferries said trips between Larne and Cairnryan are off for the next day at least.

Heathrow is bracing for a record-breaking December, with the airport anticipating a 21% surge in passenger numbers on Christmas Day compared to 2023.

The travel hub has seen several of its routes, including those to Singapore, Edinburgh, Lisbon, Abu Dhabi, Chicago, Zurich, Mumbai, and Paris, enter the ‘Millionaire Club’ this November, each clocking over a million passengers in 2024.

Heathrow is on track to celebrate 25 routes reaching the million-passenger milestone this year, a step up from 24 in the previous year. Following a bumper November with over 6.5 million travellers, marking the airport’s busiest November ever, Heathrow CEO Thomas Woldbye commented: “This year has been all about providing high levels of service for record amounts of passengers at Heathrow, and November was no different.”

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