How long is the runway at Gatwick?

Located some 30 miles south of central London (half an hour by train), just outside the town of Crawley in West Sussex, Gatwick Airport opened as an aerodrome for commercial flights in the early 1930s. Today the airport consists of two terminals, north and south, which use a single runway, 3,316 metres in length.



London Gatwick Airport (LGW) primarily operates as a single-runway airport, utilizing its main runway, designated as 08R/26L. This runway has a total length of 3,316 meters (10,879 feet). There is a secondary standby runway (08L/26R) that is 2,565 meters (8,415 feet) long; however, due to its close proximity to the main runway, it can usually only be used when the main one is closed for maintenance. As of 2026, Gatwick is progressing with a multi-billion pound expansion plan to bring this emergency standby runway into routine use for narrow-bodied aircraft (like the A320 or Boeing 737). This change is designed to increase the airport's capacity by approximately 100,000 flights per year by the late 2020s. For now, Gatwick holds the record for being one of the world's busiest and most efficient single-runway hubs, managing hundreds of daily movements on its primary 3.3-kilometer stretch of asphalt.

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The airport has two runways, the Northern Runway which is 3,902 metres by 50 metres and the Southern Runway which is 3,658 metres by 50 metres.

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Most construction will be within the airport perimeter, bar stretches of additional local road lanes and flyovers, and Gatwick has said it hopes work will start in 2025 for the runway to be in use by 2030.

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From 23:00 to 07:00 is the “night period”, during which the noisiest types of aircraft may not be scheduled to land or take-off. The 'night quota period' is from 23:30 to 06:00. Between these hours aircraft movements are restricted to an upper limit on the number of movements.

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Today the airport consists of two terminals, north and south, which use a single runway, 3,316 metres in length. A second runway exists but is only operated when the main runway is out of action. Gatwick airport flies to more destinations than any other UK airport, handling over 43 million passengers per year.

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Shigatse Peace Airport, China (runway length: 5,000m) Shigatse Peace Airport (RKZ), a dual-use military and civilian airport in Shigatse, Tibet hosts the longest runway in the world. The new runway (09/27) stretches 5,000m (16,404 ft) long with a 60-meter asphalt overrun at each end.

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Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport remains the busiest airport in the world with 5.2 million seats in September 2023. The composition of the Global Top 10 Busiest Airports is also the same as last month but there are a few changes to the rankings.

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Same Runway Separation: One Arrival, One Departure If the other aircraft is departing and has crossed the runway departure threshold, separation is guaranteed and another aircraft may land. Again, however, exceptions apply: 1) 3,000 Feet of Separation: Category I aircraft landing behind Category I or II.

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You might be thinking that the numbers on this diagram are backwards. On a handheld compass, south is 180 degrees (so 18 in runway terms) and west is 270 (27). But the “W” is numbered 9 because the runway number is connected to the direction the plane is traveling.

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The airport is owned and operated by Gatwick Airport Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ivy Holdco Limited, owned by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), among others.

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For all intents and purposes, London Gatwick Airport (LGW) already has two runways. While one is used as the everyday runway, the other is used as a taxiway most of the time. The second runway is only used for departures and arrivals when the primary runway can't be used.

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The name Gatwick is said to derive from old English meaning (essentially) “Goat Farm”. The London & Brighton Railway opened on 12th July 1841 and ran close to the Gatwick Manor house. The Jordan family sold the land to the newly established Gatwick Race Course Company in 1890.

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Denver International Airport Situated in Denver, Colorado, USA, Denver International Airport covers an area of 135.69 square kilometres, making it the second-largest airport in the world.

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London Heathrow (LHR) is the busiest airport in the UK, handling almost twice the number of passengers as the next entry on the list.

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The Boeing 747 is considered to have the longest takeoff distance of the more common aircraft types and has set the standard for runway lengths of larger international airports.

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The airfield is managed by three FAA air traffic control towers. O'Hare has a voluntary nighttime (22:00–07:00) noise abatement program. Currently, O'Hare has the most runways of any civilian airport in the world, totaling eight.

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Is There a Runway 0? You shouldn't find any runway numbered either “0” or “00”. Any runway which points to magnetic north will normally be given the designator “36” (as in 360 degrees). This will also correspond with the headings read out by both ATC and the pilot.

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More than 50 planes take off and land here every hour, and it's getting even more crowded. Up to 55 planes land and take off every hour on the 3316 metre long by 45m wide runway in London's south east.

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London Gatwick offers luxurious private jet terminals equipped with a range of VIP services, including private lounges, fast-track security, and even concierge services for any last-minute needs or preferences.

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The problem with Gatwick's two runways is their proximity. While the two runways at Heathrow are separated by several terminals, the runways at Gatwick are only separated by a small strip of grass. This means that the two cannot realistically be used simultaneously.

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