London Stansted welcomed a record-breaking 2.6 million passengers to the airport in June, an increase of 11.3 per cent on the same month last year and beating the previous high for the month, set in 2017, by nearly 270,000 passengers.

The record breaking month saw Emirates launch its new daily flight connecting London’s fastest growing airport with its hub in Dubai and onward to over 150 destinations across the global, in addition to Stansted being named in the top five of European airports registering the highest growth in direct flight connectivity over the past five years. Stansted’s most popular destinations include Istanbul, Spain and Sofia in Bulgaria.

Stansted’s owners MAG hopes to build infrastructure which will boost passenger numbers at Stansted from 35 million per year, to 43 million and is is awaiting a planning decision.

The Airports Council International (ACI) Europe annual Airport Industry Connectivity Report revealed that London Stansted recorded a 43 per cent increase in the number of direct flights offered from the airport since 2013, the year MAG acquired Stansted.

In the year ending June 2018, Stansted served 26.8 million passengers, an increase of 7.6 per cent compared with the previous 12-month period.

James Dix, London Stansted’s Finance Director, said: “June was another record breaking month for Stansted with the airport once again the fastest growing of all the London airports, adding nearly 280,000 extra passengers above what was our busiest ever June last year.

“It was also a very significant milestone month as we proudly welcomed one of the world’s premier airlines in Emirates to the airport, the latest airline to recognise the fantastic opportunity Stansted offers to serve the London and the East of England markets.

“Global trade organisation, Airports Council International, recently announced that London Stansted recorded a 43 per cent increase in the number of direct flights offered from the airport since 2013. This is another strong example we are achieving our aim to provide even more choice of direct and convenient air travel for the catchment we serve, doing so by investing significantly in our infrastructure to improve the airport experience and competing with airports across the world to encourage even more airlines to join us.”