Aerospace Global News
Luke Peters
29 Mar 2026
Since its first passenger flight in 1946 using a converted WW2 bomber, Heathrow has developed into a global aviation hub serving 85 million passengers annually.
On 25 March 1946, London Heathrow Airport (LHR) handled its first commercial passenger flight. Since then, hundreds of millions of passengers have used the airport either at the start or end of their journeys by air. The airport is currently the largest in the UK and was the world’s seventh busiest airport in terms of passengers handled in 2025.
Aerospace Global News takes a closer look at the key milestones that have marked the airport’s development over the past 80 years and looks ahead to where the airport will be in the years to come...
