Would anyone like to help me settle a score?
A senior executive in the UK aviation industry claimed that Heathrow, the world's busiest international airport, is "not a hub airport".
Now I've been in this game for almost a decade now, and I've seen wacky ideas come and go, but never could I imagine EGLL being described as anything other than a hub.
Would anyone dispute this definition?
An airline hub is an airport that an airline uses as a transfer point to get passengers to their intended destination
On that basis (thanks PF) - Timisoara in Romania is a hub as, despite its relatively small size, Carpatair use it to provide transfers between various niche airports.
On an even smaller level, St Martin, much loved by spotters for its over-beach landings, is also a hub, as Winair bring people in and out from numerous other nearby islands using the legendary Twotters.
So on what basis could EGLL possibly
not be a hub?
Apparently, it fails to meet such a definition because it does not operate the same system of in and outbound flight banks that is used, for example, at CDG.
Surely that just means that it isn't the
same kind of hub as CDG.
But still very much a hub.
Would anyone care to differ?