Istanbul Airport takes the top spot as Europe’s busiest airport, according to passenger figures reported for July. Heathrow is no longer first, with the Turkish hub handling more travellers than the west London airport during the month.
Euronews and the Evening Standard both cite Heathrow’s July passenger total and Istanbul’s higher figure, while noting the size of the gap. The Evening Standard puts Heathrow at 7.86 million passengers across its four terminals, compared with Istanbul’s 8.15 million. Euronews reports that Istanbul carries almost 300,000 more passengers than Heathrow. Both outlets frame the shift as a change in rankings rather than a sudden overall reversal.
Context mentioned by Euronews includes London Heathrow’s recent passenger decline relative to the prior period, and it also references Heathrow’s plans for a third runway. The Belfast Telegraph headline aligns with the same core development—Heathrow being overtaken by Istanbul—but no additional details were provided in its excerpt.
