How many flights does Heathrow actually have to the emerging economies?

There have been letters in the Sunday Times and in the Sunday Telegraph from lists of business people, in support of airport expansion in the south east, and demanding reconsideration of a third runway at Heathrow.  They claim that Heathrow is lagging behind Schiphol, Paris Charles de Gaulle and Frankfurt airport in the number of flights to the emerging and rapidly growing economies. And that therefore the  UK will be condemned to an economic backwater if vast amounts of concrete are not poured, and another runway is not provided. But what is the actual situation?  Are there really not enough flights to emerging economies from Heathrow?  Are the numbers to some destinations low just because there really is not the demand (however much UK business might like there to be the demand)? We investigate what flights there really are from Heathrow already.



The letter by supporters of UK aviation growth in the Sunday Times http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/business/Industry/article985631.ece  says that Heathrow has “fewer weekly flights than our European rivals to seven of the eight growth economies identified by the IMF”.

So which are the top worldwide emerging economies with the fastest growth rates?  And does Heathrow have flights to these countries?  Or enough flights for our current needs?

Looking at research from Business Insider, in October 2011, they come up with the list below. [ Top 15 fastest growing economies in the world (Oct 2011)
http://www.businessinsider.com/countries-with-the-fastest-growing-gdp-in-the-world-2011-10 ].

Business Insider checked out the countries with the fastest growing GDPs, and what their actual GDP numbers are through Bloomberg, and then tried to figure out their secret by looking at their key industries through the CIA Factbook. 

Then the Heathrow flight numbers are from FlightStats at http://www.flightstats.co.uk/FlightStatus/flightStatusByAirport.do

[By contrast, 21 direct flights per day from Heathrow to Miami, and 18 per day to Abu Dhabi, and 16 to Dubai and 54 to Amsterdam] .

 

The top 15 countries by GDP growth rate:

These are, from number 15 up to number 1 by growth rate, the top 15  countries as listed by Business Insider, and the number of Heathrow daily flights (approx).

Lithuania
Capital city Vilnius
GDP Growth: 6.3%
GDP: $36 billion
Key Industries: Durable goods manufacturing, petroleum refinery, textiles.

Flight direct from Luton, change at Brussels from Heathrow.

 


 

Indonesia
Capital City Jakarta
GDP Growth: 6.5%
GDP: $706.56 billion
Key Industries: Oil and gas, mining, textiles, chemical fertilizers, plywood, rubber.

Flight from Heathrow, one change at Hong Kong

 


 

Kazakhstan
Capital City Astana (also Almaty)
GDP Growth: 7.0%
GDP: $142.99 billion
Key Industries: Oil, coal, metals, agricultural machinery, construction materials.

2 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Almaty.


Egypt
Capital City Cairo
GDP Growth: 7.1%
GDP: $219 billion
Key Industries: Agriculture, textiles, chemicals, construction, pharmaceuticals, metals, light manufactures.

6 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Cairo.


 

Nigeria
Capital City Lagos
GDP Growth: 7.5%
GDP: $194 billion
Key Industries: Crude oil, tin, agriculture, construction, chemicals, fertilizer, wood, textiles.

3 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Lagos.


 

India
Capital City New Delhi (Also Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Ammedabad, and others)
GDP Growth: 7.7%
GDP: $1.72 trillion
Key Industries: Agriculture, textiles, chemicals, mining, petroleum, transportation equipment, software, pharmaceuticals.

10 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Delhi.
14 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Mumbai.
1 direct flight from Heathrow per day to Chennai.
1 direct flight from Heathrow per day to Hyderabad.
2 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Bangalore.

1 direct flight from Heathrow per day to Hyderabad.

? and Amritsar ?


 

Sri Lanka
Capital City Colombo
GDP Growth: 8.2%
GDP: $49.55 billion
Key Industries: Agriculture, rubber, shipping, clothing and textiles, IT, construction, banking, tourism, telecommunications, insurance.

2 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Colombo.


Turkey
Capital City Ankara (also Instanbul)
GDP Growth: 8.3%
GDP: $735 billion
Key Industries: Agriculture, textiles, electronics, mining, Steele, petroleum, construction, lumber, paper.

2 direct flight from Heathrow per day to Istanbul (change at Istanbul for Ankara).


Estonia
Capital City Tallinn
GDP Growth: 8.4%
GDP: $19 billion
Key Industries: Engineering, electronics, wood and wood products, textiles, IT, telecommunications.

Several flights per day, with one change (Amsterdam or other)


Argentina
Capital City Buenos Aires
GDP Growth: 9.1%
GDP: $369 billion
Key Industries: Agriculture, motor vehicles, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, steel, consumer durable, metalurgy.

2 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Buenos Aires.


China
Capital City Beijing (also Shanghai and Hong Kong)
GDP Growth: 9.1%
GDP: $5.878 trillion
Key Industries: Mining, machine building, consumer products (toys, foot ware, electronics, textiles and clothing, machine building, armaments, transportation equipment, chemicals, cement, fertilizers, telecommunications, vehicles, satellites.

3 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Beijing.
3 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Shanghai.
9 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Hong Kong.

3 direct flights to Guangzhou per week start  June 2012. (China Southern)

 


 

Jordan

Capital City Amman
GDP Growth: 10.9%
GDP: $28 billion
Key Industries: Clothing, fertilizers, petroleum refining, potash, inorganic chemicals, cement, tourism, light manufacturing, pharmaceuticals.

8 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Amman.

 


 

Lebanon
Capital City Beirut
GDP Growth: 19.0%
GDP: $39 billion
Key Industries: Banking, tourism, agriculture, wine, jewelry, cement, textiles, mineral and chemical products, wood and furniture products, oil refining, metal fabricating.

8 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Beirut.

 


 

Qatar
Capital City Doha
GDP Growth: 30.8%
GDP: $96 billion
Key Industries: Liquefied natural gas, crude oil production and refining, cement, commercial ship repair, petrochemicals, ammonia, fertilizers.

9 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Doha.

 


 

Zambia
Capital City Lusaka
GDP Growth: 48.7%
GDP: $16 billion
Key Industries: Copper mining and processing, construction, agriculture, chemicals, textiles, fertilizer, horticulture

1 or 2 flights, changing at Nairobi per day.

 


 

Which are the main emerging markets?

The FTSE Group distinguishes between Advanced and Secondary Emerging markets on the basis of their national income and the development of their market infrastructure. The Advanced Emerging markets are classified as such because they are upper or lower middle income GNI countries with advanced market infrastructures or high income GNI countries with lesser developed market infrastructures.[12][13]

The Advanced Emerging markets are:

 Brazil Czech Republic Hungary Malaysia Mexico
 Poland[14] South Africa Taiwan[14] Turkey

The Secondary Emerging markets

include some low income, lower middle, upper middle and high income GNI countries with reasonable market infrastructures and significant size and some upper middle income GNI countries with lesser developed market infrastructures. The secondary emerging markets are:

 Chile China Colombia Egypt India
 Indonesia Morocco Pakistan Peru Philippines
 Russia Thailand[15] UAE

 

Does Heathrow have flights to these countries, and are they direct flights?

(Flight details from http://www.flightstats.co.uk/FlightStatus/flightStatusByAirport.do   or http://www.searchcheapflights.co.uk/ )

Brazil

Capital City – Rio de Janeiro

2 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Rio

 

Czech Republic

Capital City – Prague

12 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Prague.

 

Hungary

Capital City – Budapest

9 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Budapest.

 

Malaysia

Capital City – Kuala Lumpur

4 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Kuala Lumpur.

 

Mexico

Capital City – Mexico City

Direct flight from Heathrow some days.

 

Poland

Capital City -Warsaw

16 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Warsaw.

 

South Africa

Capital City – Johannesburg

18 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Johannesburg

9 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Cape Town

 

Taiwan

Capital City – Taipei

1 or more direct flights from Heathrow per day to Taipei

 

Turkey

Capital City – Ankara

2 direct flight from Heathrow per day to Istanbul (change at Istanbul for Ankara).


 

Secondary emerging countries:

Chile
Capital City – Santiago

No direct Heathrow flight

 


 

China
Capital City – Beijing

3 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Beijing.
3 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Shanghai.
9 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Hong Kong.

 


 

Colombia
Capital City – Bogota

No direct Heathrow flight

 


 

Egypt
Capital City – Cairo

6 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Cairo.

 


 

India
Capital City – New Delhi

10 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Delhi.
14 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Mumbai.
1 direct flight from Heathrow per day to Chennai.
1 direct flight from Heathrow per day to Hyderabad.
2 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Bangalore.

1 direct flight from Heathrow per day to Hyderabad.

? and Amritsar ?

 


 

 

Indonesia
Capital City – Jakarta

Flight from Heathrow, one change at Hong Kong

 


 

Morocco
Capital City – Rabat

No direct Heathrow flight

 


 

 

Pakistan
Capital City – Islamabad

1 direct flight per day from Heathrow to Lahore.

 


 

 

Peru
Capital City – Lima

No direct Heathrow flight to Lima.

 


 

Phillipines
Capital City – Manila

No direct flight from Heathrow to Manila.

 


 

Russia
Capital City – Moscow

17 direct flights from Heathrow to Moscow per day.

1 direct flight from Heathrow to St Petersburg per day.

 


 

Thailand
Capital City – Bangkok

10 direct flights from Heathrow per day to Bangkok.


 

UAE

Capital City – Abu Dhabi

18 direct flights from Heathrow to Abu Dhabi per day.

 


 

The top 30 largest economies by GDP (Gross Domestic Product)

according to Wikipedia are:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)

Data from the IMF                    US Dollars   $

1 United States14,526,550
2 China5,878,257n2
3 Japan5,458,797
4 Germany3,286,451
5 France2,562,742
6 United Kingdom2,250,209
7 Brazil2,090,314
8 Italy2,055,114
9 India1,631,970
10 Canada1,577,040
11 Russia1,479,825
12 Spain1,409,946
13 Australia1,237,363
14 Mexico1,034,308
15 Korea, South1,014,482

 

16 Netherlands780,668
17 Turkey735,487
18 Indonesia706,752
19 Switzerland527,920
20 Poland469,401
21 Belgium467,779
22 Sweden458,725
23 Saudi Arabia448,360
24 Republic of China(Taiwan)429,845
25 Norway412,990
26 Iran407,382
27 Austria377,382
28 Argentina369,992
29 South Africa363,655
30 Thailand318,908

n2 Figures exclude Taiwan, and special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau.

 

Heathrow has flights to all of these, but not direct flights to the furthest destinations, due to the distance (eg. Australia and South Korea, though there are many direct flights to Tokyo (8 direct flights per day), Hong Kong (9 direct flights per day), and Singapore (21 direct flights per day) for the transfer.


 

 

See also

International Air Connectivity for Business (Heathrow)

Date:  August 2011
Author:  AirportWatch
Length:  16 pages
Summary: The report shows just how well connected Heathrow, and London’s five airports in general, are for business destinations.  Heathrow has 990 departures each week to key business destinations in Asia, Latin America, North America and Europe, more than the combined total of its closest rivals, Charles de Gaulle, Paris and Frankfurt airports.  London airports combined (Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted)  have more than double the number of flights to key business destinations each week compared with Paris, Frankfurt, and Amsterdam’s.  More London airport capacity is not needed, in order for business to fly conveniently to any important destination.
Link:  International Air Connectivity for Business