As the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations sweep the nation this weekend, Gatwick Airport will be hosting its very own British-themed street party to welcome the guests that are expected to travel through Gatwick today.

Scots Guards, Pearly Kings and Queens, a brass band and a bagpiper are among the British themed activities which will entertain passengers. A Great British tea party with scones, Victoria sponge and cucumber sandwiches will be served and passengers will be treated to a free Union Jack flag and a royal cupcake as they pass through.   

Passengers will be joined by 60 guests from local charities and organisations including Age UK Cherry Tree Centre in Burgess Hill and Age UK Silver Birch Centre in Crawley, The Point Scope in West Sussex and the Reigate and Redhill Live at Home scheme in Horley who have been invited to join the celebrations. British Airways will also be taking part by providing freshly made scones for the occasion.

Paul Fitch Head of Terminal Operations at Gatwick Airport said, “We are very excited to be celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and providing the very best passenger experience for all visitors to Gatwick - a focus only heightened during what will be an historic 2012.       

“Over the course of the bank holiday weekend (2 - 5 June) we are expecting around 400,000 passengers to travel through Gatwick. Our commitment is to treat every passenger as our guest - which is especially important to us as we’re set to welcome over 110,000 passengers to Gatwick on Friday 1 June - the perfect day for a Jubilee knees up.”

This is not the first Royal occasion Gatwick has celebrated. In 1958 Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II officially opened Gatwick following a £7 million renovation project which saw Gatwick become the world’s first airport to combine mainline rail travel, road and air terminal services from one terminal. Then in 1988, she returned to Gatwick to officially open the new North Terminal, which connected to the newly named South Terminal by a new automated track transit system.

Today, under new ownership, Gatwick is continuing to improve the overall passenger experience of the airport as part of its £1.2 billion investment programme, from the moment passengers arrive at the front door, check-in and pass through security to when they board their flight.

This weekend marks the official opening of Gatwick’s new South Terminal welcome entrance following the completion of a £31 million project. The spacious, light entrance area and the newly created zones for cars, taxis, buses and coaches are now allowing passengers to travel directly to and from the terminal building with much greater ease.