Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport is not simply a great airport, it is almost a city in itself. Over 70,000 people work here, with over 100,000 additional jobs working in the supply and service industries. It is estimated that the airport contributes well over five billion pounds a year to the British economy.Heathrow Airport is the largest single site employers in the United Kingdom.
90 airlines use Heathrow, transporting over 70 million passengers to 180 destinations throughout the world. Heathrow handles nearly half a million flights a year. Nearly 60% of all airfreight carried in the United Kingdom goes through Heathrow.
Heathrow is the third largest airport in the world and the busiest for handling international passengers. There are five terminals, the most recent being Terminal 5, opened in 2008.
These are all impressive statistics which show the importance of Heathrow to London and the United Kingdom as a whole.
These are all impressive statistics which show the importance of Heathrow to London and the United Kingdom as a whole.
Heathrow airport had humble beginnings, starting life nearly one hundred years ago as a training centre for the Royal Flying Corps. It remained a military base until 1919, and once again during World War 2.
In 1946,a decision was taken to convert Heathrow into a civilian airport, and from very small beginnings, the enormous airport has evolved. Heathrow takes its name from the tiny hamlet of Heathrow, which was demolished to make way for the airport.
The first terminal building was not completed until 1955, known as the "Europa Terminal". Until then, everything was pretty makeshift, with temporary buidings everywhere. The Europa terminal is now known as Terminal 2.
Terminal 3 was opened in 1961. Originally known as the "Oceanic" terminal, this was designed for long haul flights. Terminal 1 was opened in 1968, making three terminals in all. In addition to passenger facilities, a large air cargo centre was built, with tunnels connecting to the other terminals.
Terminal 4 was opened in 1986, and became the main terminal for British Airways.
Terminal 5 was opened in March 2008 by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth. The opening few weeks were, to put it mildly, slightly traumatic, but initial baggage problems have been rectified.
Heathrow has seen the introduction of the "Jet Age" with the introction of the British made Comet aircraft. Heathrow was also the base for Concorde for many years, until the aircraft was taken out of service in 2003. Other famous aircraft to use Heathrow were the British built VC10 long distance plane, and the Boeing 747, which was the largest passenger plane of its time.
Heathrow Airport has excellent transport links. The airport is served by the London Underground, and is less than one hour by road from central London. The airport also has a very large number of heathrow parking facilities for those passengers who wish to park at the airport. The airport is also well served by hotels, with upwards of fifty hotels either on site, or close by.
There are plans to extend Heathrow even further by the construction of a Third runway, and a sixth terminal. However, there is considerable opposition to the plan, with the result that the expansion will require many years of planning and enviromental inquiries. Whether the third runway is ever built is highly debatable.
The large amount and ease of Heathrow Airport Car Parking is a great asset of the airport, with tens of thousands of places available. Incredibly, they do tend to fill up pretty quickly, especially in peak holiday seasons, so it is always best to book ahead ( and by so doing save a considerable amount of money)
There are numerous choices of Heathrow Parking available to passengers. Some are suitable for all terminals, some for one or more terminals, and some for a single terminal.
We have sorted the Heathrow Parking options into five main groupings:
Heathrow Meet and Greet and Valet Parking
Heathrow Hotels with Car Parking
CLICK HERE for today's latest Heathrow Airport Parking prices ( updated every day)
CLICK HERE to see our Heathrow Airport Hotels with Parking deals ( updated every day)
We hope you find our website informative and easy to use, and that you book your heathrow airport parking with us