Norwegian has acquired an additional 28 weekly slots at London Gatwick Airport from summer 2018.

The take-off and landing slots, purchased from Small Planet Airlines, will allow Norwegian to plan for continued growth at Gatwick as the airline heads into its busiest ever year in the UK in 2018.

London Gatwick is at the heart of Norwegian’s fast-growing UK operation, where the airline already flies more than 4.6 million passengers each year to over 30 global destinations.

Norwegian’s route network at Gatwick includes affordable long-haul flights to nine US cities and Singapore, with further long-haul routes to Argentina, Chicago and Austin launching early next year.

Planning work is now underway to allocate the newly acquired 28 weekly slots which cover the busy summer 2018 period at London Gatwick.

Norwegian chief commercial officer, Thomas Ramdahl, said: “London Gatwick is at the heart of our global growth ambitions so securing these crucial new slots will allow us to offer our passengers even more new routes, additional flights and affordable fares.

“Together with the launch of new routes to Argentina, Chicago and Austin in 2018, gaining extra capacity at London Gatwick is another huge boost as we get ready for our biggest ever year in the UK.”

Norwegian carries 5.2 million UK passengers each year from London Gatwick, Edinburgh, Belfast and Manchester Airports to 50 destinations worldwide.