Gatwick Airport saw 2.8 million passengers travelling through the airport in January, up 12.1 per cent on 2016.

Long-haul routes continue their booming growth at Gatwick, up 23.2 per cent on January 2016.

Gatwick Airport, chief executive, Stewart Wingate said: “Gatwick continues to set new precedents for a single-runway airport – we now serve 43.4 million passengers annually.

“With more than 20 new routes added to the airport’s destinations last year, driving long-haul growth of 23.2 per cent in January, Gatwick continues to demonstrate the benefits of competition in the London airport market.

“Further new routes already confirmed to start this summer include Xi’an, China – the UK’s only direct route to the home of the terracotta army – plus British Airways providing passengers with more choice on routes to Oakland and Fort Lauderdale adding to Norwegian’s existing services to these destinations.

“Gatwick’s booming long-haul services and increased cargo volumes, this January, once again prove the vital role the airport plays in the UK economy at this crucial time for the country, as we continue to offer the UK Government a credible and deliverable option for runway expansion.”

In a strong month for UK airport, Heathrow, Stansted, and Manchester airports all broke long-standing passenger records.