London Heathrow
Airport

Yes, but for most trips they should not. Heathrow is ACL Level 3 slot coordinated, the tightest regime in the UK, with scheduled airlines holding almost all capacity. General aviation slots are scarce, parking is effectively unavailable, and handling is mandatory. It works for a passenger connecting onto a scheduled long haul flight from the same terminal. For a London arrival, Farnborough, Biggin Hill or Luton are better on every axis except that one.

Capacity. Two runways operating at close to their declared limit, a slot pool almost entirely held by airlines, and night movements capped under a quota between 2330 and 0600. A private aircraft is fitted into whatever is left, and at peak there is very little left. Our guide to who should avoid flying a private jet into Heathrow goes through the cases in detail.

09L/27R is 3,902 metres, about 12,802 feet, and 09R/27L is 3,660 metres, about 12,008 feet. Field elevation is 83 feet and fire cover is ICAO Category 10. Nothing in business aviation is constrained by the runways; everything is constrained by the slot.

Business aviation handling exists but there is no dedicated general aviation apron of any scale, and aircraft generally cannot remain on the ground. The usual shape is a drop and go with the aircraft repositioning to Farnborough, Biggin Hill or Luton, which adds a positioning leg to the cost and the crew duty.

Movements between 2330 and 0600 are restricted under a quota and noise classification system, and the most noise-sensitive types are not permitted in that window at all. A late evening private arrival needs to be planned against the published night period rather than assumed.

When passengers connect onto a scheduled flight from Heathrow itself, particularly long haul, and the ground transfer from another airport would cost more time than the slot costs in complexity. That is a real and common case. Outside it, the London reliever fields are quicker, cheaper and more flexible.

Farnborough for almost any trip whose destination is London or the south west of it. It is a dedicated business aviation airport with no airline traffic, roughly 35 miles from central London. Heathrow only when the scheduled connection is the point.

Luton for the north of London and for most trips wanting a large business aviation infrastructure, with several FBOs and the highest private jet volume in the London area. Luton is also Level 3 coordinated, but general aviation is a core part of its operation rather than fitted around airlines.

Yes, through an approved handler. There is no alternative and the arrangement needs making at the same time as the slot request.

No landing permit as such for most private and charter operations, but a General Aviation Report must be submitted to UK Border Force in advance of arrival, and the slot at a coordinated airport is a hard requirement. We file the GAR and the slot together.

It opened as London Airport in 1946 on the site of the Great West Aerodrome, was renamed Heathrow in 1966 after the hamlet it displaced, and grew into the busiest airport in Europe by passenger numbers. Its two-runway constraint has shaped British aviation policy for decades and is the reason the London reliever airports exist at the scale they do.

Greenwich Mean Time in winter and British Summer Time from late March to late October, which is UTC+0 and UTC+1 respectively.