Jet2 to start flying from Gatwick next year – increasing competition at the hub

The latest round of an intense battle is underway between UK airlines and holiday companies. jet2 Scheduled flight will start from london gatwick Airport in March 2026 – adding to fierce competition at the Sussex hub.

The Leeds-based company is both a low-cost airline and the UK’s largest tour operator. Jet2 says it has “secured slots for six aircraft after the airport released additional capacity.”

The Airbus A321neo aircraft will serve all major leisure airports in Spain (including the Balearics and Canary Islands), Faro in Portugal, Verona and Naples in Italy and 10 Greek destinations. Other targets are Antalya in Türkiye, Paphos in Cyprus, Pula in Croatia, Burgas in Bulgaria and Malta.

Jet2 chief executive, Steve Heapy, said: “For many years, our ambition has been to provide our differentiated, service-based, end-to-end product offering from London Gatwick, and we see this as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to accelerate our growth from the UK’s largest beach and city leisure destination airport.”

New arrivals face intense competition. Gatwick is the main base for Britain’s largest budget airline, easyJetAccording to CEO Kenton Jarvis, which owns “70 odd” aircraft. In addition, the airport is a major base British AirwaysWhich operates 26 short-haul aircraft at Gatwick. This week BA chief executive Sean Doyle said the base was “performing very well, and we compete well”.

tuiThe UK’s second largest holiday carrier after Jet2, it has a strong presence at Gatwick. Wizz Air also flies to a wide range of European routes and to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.

Aviation analyst Sean Moulton said: “Jet2 has grown rapidly since the demise of Thomas Cook in 2019 – adding new bases at Bristol, Bournemouth, Luton and now Gatwick. “The airline will take on EasyJet and Tui at its biggest base, which is a bold strategy, but Jet2 has been building on its established bases in these areas for years.

“With this additional competition the consumer is likely to benefit from lower prices and better flight times.”

Given the fierce competition at Gatwick, Jet2 has told investors it does not expect to reach profitability at the airport until financial year 2029.

Mr Hepi said, “Although establishing our leisure operations and service will take time and investment in the short term, we expect meaningful profit growth in the long term.”

A senior aviation source said: “British Airways and easyJet will be angry. It’s hard to think which will see the greater impact – probably easyJet because it’s so big there. If easyJet’s Gatwick profitability drops, the rest of its business will be left in the cold.

“However, this will be great news for consumers while it lasts.”

It is understood that the new slots have been created by adjusting the runway capacity limit. Gatwick is the world’s busiest single-runway airport, and There are plans to bring its standby runway into permanent use For departing holiday flights.

Independent EasyJet and British Airways have been invited to comment.

Full list of destinations Jet2 will fly to from Gatwick in summer 2026

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