Gatwick named UK’s most chaotic Christmas airport

New analysis reveals the UK’s most chaotic airports at Christmas – with London Gatwick ranking as the worst hotspot for festive travel disruption.

Travel insurance experts at Quotezone.co.uk have created the Christmas Chaos Airport Index to uncover where travellers are most likely to encounter Christmas delays and cancellations.

December is one of the busiest months for UK air travel as millions head abroad for winter sun and festive family visits. 

But with more flights comes the increased likelihood of travel turbulence – with passengers having to contend with delays, cancellations, and weather-related disruption. 

More than 20 million people travelled via UK airports last December, with Storm Darragh and industrial strikes both causing significant turmoil.*

The Christmas Chaos Airport Index covers the 14 busiest airports in the UK, ranking them using data on the average delay time, percentage of cancelled flights, percentage of flights delayed for more than 30 minutes, and the total number of terminal passengers – based on Civil Aviation Authority statistics from Christmas 2024.

Gatwick topped the index with the UK’s highest average delay time of 26 minutes – double that of the East Midlands, seemingly the least chaotic airport.

It’s also the second busiest UK airport after Heathrow in terms of passenger numbers, with more than one in five flights (21.19%) delayed by over 30 minutes.

Manchester ranked second with average delays of 22 minutes and 20.51% of flights running over 30 minutes late.

London Stansted placed third, recording the highest proportion of long delays (23.03%) but a low cancellation rate of just 0.5%.

Despite being the UK’s busiest airport, Heathrow has an average delay of just 18 minutes and only 17.21% of flights running over 30 minutes late.

Edinburgh was Scotland’s most chaotic airport overall, but Glasgow International recorded the highest cancellation rate of all UK airports at 3.9%.

While three of the top four are part of the London airport system, surprisingly, London Luton airport ranks as one of the UK’s least chaotic airports despite servicing over 1 million passengers. 

With average delays of only 15 minutes, 13.83% of flights facing delays over more than 30 minutes, and just 1% of flight cancellations, the Bedfordshire-based airport is an ideal choice for those looking for a more stress-free experience close to the capital. 

But for those travellers looking for the most relaxing airport experience before their holiday, East Midlands airport appears to be the answer.

The midlands-based airport ranks as the least chaotic in every factor, handling around 5,000 daily passengers last December. Recording delays of just 13 minutes on average, 10.22% long delays and a 0.2% cancellation rate.

Helen Rolph, travel insurance expert at Quotezone said: “Christmas is one of the most demanding times for UK airports as millions of travellers head off seeking winter sun or visiting their families for the holidays. 

“But with busy terminals and the risk of bad weather, disruption is always a possibility.

“Our index helps to give travellers a realistic picture of what to expect this Christmas and a handy overview of their nearest airports. As Luton shows, high passenger numbers don’t always mean high levels of disruption.

“It’s important that Christmas travellers allow extra time getting to the airport, check flight updates regularly, and make sure they have the right travel insurance with any extras added – travel disruption insurance can help with a whole range of unexpected incidents but it doesn’t normally come with standard travel insurance.” 

Quotezone can help holidaymakers compare and find savings on all sorts of essential travel requirements such as travel insurance, annual travel insurance, travel insurance for families and those who need travel insurance for pre-existing conditions. 

References:
*20 million passengers statistic taken from the total terminal passenger data for all airports
All information correct as of 14/11/2025

Average delay in mins – 202412 On Time Performance Tables (XLSX document) at https://www.caa.co.uk/data-and-analysis/uk-aviation-market/flight-punctuality/uk-flight-punctuality-statistics/2024
Percentage of flights delayed more than 30 mins – 202412 Punctuality Statistics Summary Analysis (CSV document) at https://www.caa.co.uk/data-and-analysis/uk-aviation-market/flight-punctuality/uk-flight-punctuality-statistics/2024/
Percentage of cancelled flights – 202412 On Time Performance Tables (XLSX document) at https://www.caa.co.uk/data-and-analysis/uk-aviation-market/flight-punctuality/uk-flight-punctuality-statistics/2024/
Total terminal passengers – https://www.caa.co.uk/Documents/Download/11910/4d230d1f-dab6-4c1a-992a-431b9cca89a2/16932

Bristol Airport did not submit figures for December – the percentage for Bristol has been taken from 2024 as a whole from the document 2024 On Time Performance Tables (XLSX document) at https://www.caa.co.uk/data-and-analysis/uk-aviation-market/flight-punctuality/uk-flight-punctuality-statistics/2024
Manchester and Stansted both resulted in the same points score. Manchester has been ranked higher due to a higher number of total passengers
Luton and Newcastle both resulted in the same points score. Luton has been ranked higher due to a higher number of total passengers

The airports selected for this index are the top 14 airports in the UK by passenger numbers.

This article is intended as generic information only and is not intended to apply to anybody’s specific circumstances, demands or needs. The views expressed are not intended to provide any financial service or to give any recommendation or advice. Products and services are only mentioned for illustrative rather than promotional purposes.