Travelers Should Avoid This Airport Known For Having The UK's Worst Flight Delays

When you are jetting off on vacation, there are few more annoying sights than seeing the dreaded word "delayed" pop up next to your flight number on the departures board at the airport. Yet with the amount of global air travelers increasing to around 4.7 billion in 2024 (per Reuters) and delays also on the rise, the chances of your trip facing disruption are arguably higher than ever. Some airports fare worse than others, however, and you may reduce the risk of hold-ups by avoiding travel hubs with poor records for tardiness. In the U.K., that means it might be worth looking for an alternative to London Gatwick.

Located on the outskirts of Crawley in West Sussex and around a 90-minute drive from central London, Gatwick is one of six major international airports in and around the capital. It is Britain's second-largest airport (after London Heathrow), and its two terminals served almost 41 million passengers in 2023, with figures gradually returning to pre-pandemic levels. With its own train station, Gatwick also prides itself as the country's best-connected airport by rail, and it is also part of the London Oyster Card scheme.

It is not all good news for travelers flying from Gatwick. Findings by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) revealed that Gatwick flights in 2023 were delayed by an average of 26 minutes and 54 seconds, making it the worst airport in the U.K. for punctual departures, via The Independent. The figure was 4 minutes more on average than the second-worst performer — London Luton.

Flight departures from any commercial airport can occur due to a variety of factors including bad weather, technical problems, and a host of other unexpected issues. Globally, a combination of increased demand and extreme weather provoked by climate change has put extra pressure on airports to get flights away on time, if at all. In July 2023, flights from Britain to Rhodes in Greece were canceled due to wildfires, stranding thousands of tourists, while the airline Jet2 was forced to shut down all flights to Skiathos in May 2024 due to severe thunderstorms.

As for London Gatwick, the airport has faced a number of challenges over the past few years that have contributed to its poor record for delayed departures. In 2023, staff shortages, threat of union action, and restriction of airspace resulting from the Russian invasion of Ukraine all caused disruption to flight schedules. It should be noted that Gatwick wasn't the only European airport struggling with such headaches. 

Unfortunately, 2024 looks like it could be more of the same. In June, a runway was closed as a precautionary measure due to problems with a British Airways flight heading to Canada. Then, around 300 staff threatened strike action in July, provoking fears of major disruption at the height of the summer travel season. To make matters worse for passengers, Gatwick is also regarded as one of the most stressful airports in Europe.

From Algiers to Zurich, London Gatwick reaches 220 destinations around the world. If you want to avoid flying from the airport due to its high average delays, however, there is a good chance you can get to wherever you want to go from one of the capitals other six international transport hubs. The bad news is that changing your departure point might not necessarily improve the possibility of getting away on time. In the 2023 figures revealing the least-punctual airports in the U.K., London Luton came in second with an average delay of 22 minutes and 54 seconds, and London Heathrow came in eighth place with 20 minutes exactly.

With fears that flight delays are gradually becoming the new normal, the reality is that no airport is immune to departure hold-ups. Passengers can mitigate the risk slightly by changing their travel plans from London Gatwick to London Heathrow, for example. However, it is worth knowing that Heathrow has a reputation as one of the worst airports in the world according to pilots and flight attendants.

The Gatwick Airport Guide rather optimistically suggests that passengers should "Keep calm and carry on." That might not go down well with travelers sleeping on the floor of a crowded departure lounge due to a lengthy hold up, but it also helpfully recommends checking your flight details before leaving for your trip. Elsewhere, one sound tip is booking flights during off-peak times, especially flights that are early in the morning, as delays may increase during busier periods at airports.