'Ageing' Gatwick Airport named second worst airport in the world

Research finds four British airports are ranked among the worst 10 airports in the world.

London's Gatwick Airport has been named as the second worst airport in the world, after being repeatedly beset by delays and ageing facilities.

A report commissioned by flight compensation firm Air Help found other three British airports - London Stansted, Manchester and Edinburgh - were ranked in the bottom 10, while only London Heathrow made the top 20.

According to the study, which evaluated 76 airports across the world, the main issues facing UK airports were a combination of ageing infrastructures, long walks to the boarding gates and large queues at check-ins and passport control desks.

Over the last 12 months, airports across Europe have been hit by a series of strikes from French air traffic controllers, which only exacerbated the already worrying airspace congestion. The strikes often led to delays and cancellations, which contributed to sink the rating of the British airports evaluated by the research.

The study, which analysed data from the first three months of the year and each airport's rating on the website Skytrax as well as social media comments, found Gatwick was particularly prone to flights being cancelled or delayed.

While such issues are outside the airports' control, there are growing fears that Britain's network of airports could be struggling to deal with a surge in passenger numbers at peak times. Last year, a record 268 million people passed through the country's terminals, while on Monday (12 June), Gatwick reported the busiest May in its history as it recorded a 51st consecutive month of growth.

London's second-biggest airport was ranked 75th, the second worst behind Kuwait, with a score of 5.38 out of 10, while Manchester, Edinburgh and Stansted came 74th, 72nd and 71st respectively.

Heathrow, meanwhile, came 20th with a score of 7.54.

"This research should give airlines and airports, particularly in the UK, a nudge to improve their quality and punctuality urgently," said Marius Fermi, UK manager at AirHelp.

The study warned British airports could become worse than their US counterparts, which were recently lambasted as those of a "third world country" by US President Donald Trump.

However, the Airport Operators Association, which represents over 50 airports in Britain, said £10bn of investments were planned over the next five years.

"We are working with airlines and air navigation service providers to ensure there is a government policy framework to modernise our heavily congested airspace to improve journey times and reduce delays," said a spokesman.

Singapore Changi topped the rankings with a score of 9.07, while Munich, Copenhagen, Helsinki, Barcelona, Madrid and Frankfurt ensured a strong European representation in the top 10.

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