An increasing number of UK air passengers chose to fly to Poland last year, as the eastern European country became more and more popular with overseas visitors.
According to figures from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the number of passengers on flights to and from Poland during 2006 increased by 1.5 million – up by 80 per cent compared to 2005.
Several low-cost carriers increased their presence on UK to Poland routes last year. Wizz Air alone launched a raft of new flights, including Liverpool to Gdansk and Doncaster Sheffield to Katowice.
The popularity of the air links were boosted not only by Polish nationals looking to move to London, but also by increased awareness of Poland as a top spot for a cheap city break.
Other European countries that gained in popularity with UK flyers last year include Ireland and Germany, both of which enjoyed an increase in air traffic of 0.6 million passengers, or five per cent more than in 2005.
Elsewhere in the world, the largest increase in passenger growth was witnessed on routes to the Indian subcontinent (up by 30 per cent), North Africa (up by 25 per cent) and the Middle East (up by 13 per cent).
In total, UK airports handled 235 million passengers in 2006, up by almost 3 per cent on 2005. The largest increases were seen at Stansted, Gatwick and London City.
