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Heathrow slips to second as Istanbul passes it on passenger count

Heathrow said Middle East routes were down 20.2% year on year in July amid the US Israel conflict with Iran.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Europe

Heathrow has lost its position as Europe’s busiest airport to Istanbul, new figures show, with the Turkish airport recording more passengers in July.

Heathrow handled 7.86 million passengers across its four terminals in July, while Istanbul Airport recorded 8.15 million, the BBC reported citing data from Airports Council International.

BBC Business said Heathrow attributed the decline on Middle East routes to the US Israel conflict with Iran, noting that such traffic was down 20.2% year on year in July.

Heathrow reported 84.46 million passengers in 2025 and said it is operating its two runways at near full capacity, while pursuing government permission to build a third runway that its owners say could support 150 million passengers per year.

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