Portal North. ISSUE 2 - Magazine - Page 43
HEATHROW CELEBRATES 80 YEARS
O昀케cially opened as London Airport in 1946,
Heathrow’s 昀椀rst 昀氀ight in the new post-war era took
travellers to Buenos Aires, Argentina, in a converted
Lancaster bomber called Starlight.
In its 昀椀rst year, 63,000 passengers took to the skies,
compared with the 84.5 million who jetted off from
the UK’s busiest airport in 2025.
Renamed Heathrow in 1966, the airport is celebrating
its 80th anniversary with a series of historic photos.
Sharing some of the most memorable moments, they
include The Beatles’ triumphant return from America
in 1964.
Heahthrow Airport
LIVERPOOL’S NEW RECORD
Industry 昀椀gures have put Liverpool Airport at the
top of the league for punctual departures.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority, Liverpool
John Lennon Airport had the best on time
performance record of any UK airport in 2025, with
81% of 昀氀ights operating within 15 minutes of their
scheduled departure time.
GROWING GREEN
Algeria
GATEWAY TO ALGIERS
Manchester will become the only UK airport outside of
London with a direct link to Algiers, with twice-weekly
昀氀ights to Algeria’s capital starting June.
The service with Air Algérie is described by a
spokesperson for the airline as a “signi昀椀cant
milestone” which will also connect passengers to
destinations across Africa and Asia.
Newcastle Airport has planted over 16,000 trees and
created a new woodland the size of 14 football pitches
in Northumberland.
Part of a wider carbon offset programme, the
woodland is expected to remove more than 4,000
tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere over
its lifetime.
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