London Heathrow loses title of Europe’s busiest airport to Istanbul

In July 2026, London Heathrow Airport lost its status as the busiest airport in Europe to Istanbul Airport. Official data shows that Heathrow handled 7.86 million passengers during the month, marking a 1.5% decrease compared to July 2025, while Istanbul Airport recorded 8.15 million passengers, reflecting a 2.3% growth. This shift in rankings prompted Heathrow's management to renew calls for government approval to construct a third runway, as the current two-runway infrastructure is operating near full capacity.

Analysts attribute part of the decline at Heathrow to regional instability, noting that the conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran led to a 20.2% year-on-year drop in passenger traffic on routes connecting to the Middle East. Historically, Heathrow dominated European traffic from 1996 to 2019, lost the top spot during the 2020 pandemic, but reclaimed it in 2023. The airport’s owners are pushing for an expansion project that would eventually allow the facility to handle up to 150 million passengers annually. Currently, the proposal remains subject to official government consent as the airport seeks to regain its competitive edge.