The south-east runway question

In 2015 the Airports Commission, chaired by Sir Howard Davies, came down in favour of a third runway at Heathrow. The government accepted the case for more airport capacity in the south-east but delayed the choice until at least summer 2016, declining to name Heathrow and leaving expansion at Gatwick on the table. Business groups called the delay disappointing; environmental conditions on noise and air quality were the stated reason. Campaigners on both sides of the Gatwick argument, for and against, agreed on one thing — that further delay helped nobody.

The picture has moved considerably since. Gatwick's Northern Runway project was approved in September 2025 and will eventually allow the airport to operate two runways, and both Heathrow and Luton have consented plans to grow.

For passengers, capacity debates change very little about a single journey. What changes is volume: more flights, busier terminals, longer security and immigration queues at peak times. That is the practical reason our airport collections include thirty minutes of free waiting from the moment the aircraft actually lands, rather than from the scheduled time, and why there is no charge for a delay outside your control.

Written by Airports Transfer in September 2026 for passengers travelling to and from London airports.