London Gatwick has once again been named the UK’s most delay-prone airport, according to official figures from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
Flights from the West Sussex airport departed an average of 23 minutes late in 2024 — the worst performance among Britain’s major airports for the second consecutive year.
The delay figure marks a slight improvement on 2023, when average departure delays reached 27 minutes. Nonetheless, Gatwick remained bottom of the punctuality table, narrowly behind Birmingham and Manchester airports, where average delays were 21 and 20 minutes respectively.
The figures, compiled by the PA news agency, analysed scheduled and chartered departures from 22 UK airports with at least 1,000 flights last year. Belfast City (George Best) airport recorded the best performance, with average delays under 12 minutes.
A key factor in Gatwick’s poor showing has been air traffic control disruption, including staff shortages at the airport’s outsourced control tower operated by Nats, the UK’s national air traffic services provider. While such issues have impacted airports across Europe, Gatwick faced unique challenges that contributed to the persistent delays.
A spokesperson for Gatwick said that staffing problems in the control tower had now been “fully resolved”, and added that the airport successfully avoided disruption over the Easter period, despite industrial action threats by ground-handling staff.
“Air traffic control restrictions in other parts of Europe have continued to impact the airport,” the spokesperson acknowledged, but added: “Together with our airlines, we’ve put in place a robust plan to improve on-time performance further in 2025.”
Despite Gatwick’s poor record, the broader UK picture improved in 2024. Across the country, average flight delays fell by 10 per cent, from 20 minutes and 42 seconds in 2023 to 18 minutes and 24 seconds last year.
A spokesperson for the industry group AirportsUK welcomed the overall improvement. “Aviation continues to recover from the pandemic, and operates in an extremely busy, global environment with resilience challenges,” they said. “It is therefore positive that the data shows delays continue to come down as everyone in aviation works together to provide the best possible service to passengers.”
The CAA reminded travellers of their rights in the event of delays, including access to refreshments and, in some cases, compensation — particularly where delays exceed three hours and the cause falls within the airline’s control.
Selina Chadha, a director at the CAA, said: “The industry works hard to ensure flights are punctual, but sometimes delays occur. What is important to us is what airlines and airports do to minimise disruption, as well as comply with their legal obligations to look after passengers if something happens to their flight.”
Gatwick, which is awaiting government approval for a second runway to nearly double its capacity, now faces mounting pressure to restore confidence in its reliability as passenger numbers continue to climb.
