Staggering 20-Year Fall in Domestic UK Flights as Rail Travel Rises
In 2025, the number of domestic UK flights scheduled dropped significantly to 213,025, down from a peak of 454,375 in 2006. This decline of over 240,000 flights, averaging about 661 fewer flights per day, reflects a major shift in UK travel patterns over two decades.
Domestic air fares have remained roughly flat since 2006, with examples such as the London–Edinburgh route showing prices between £40–£70 in 2025 compared to £50–£100 in 2006 when adjusted for inflation. Several factors have contributed to this decline in domestic flights, including improved and more frequent train services, higher Air Passenger Duty, environmental concerns regarding flying, and changing work patterns since the pandemic.
The CEO of Cirium described this transformation as a staggering change in UK travel. Airlines have responded by reducing internal services and focusing on international routes to popular destinations such as Spain, France, and Italy. Two decades ago, domestic flights were commonly operated by carriers like British Airways, bmi, and Flybe; however, Flybe collapsed twice, bmi and bmibaby disappeared, and some regional hubs like Doncaster Sheffield (closed 2022), Blackpool (2014), and Plymouth (2011) have shut down.
Airlines have shifted to using larger aircraft to serve longer short-haul sectors, with domestic flights now primarily acting as feeders to long-distance hubs and as lifeline routes to remote parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland. Some airports depend heavily on seasonal leisure flights.
Meanwhile, rail passenger journeys have increased from about 1.08 billion in 2005/06 to 1.73 billion in 2024/25, an increase of around 60%. This substantial growth in rail travel has significantly impacted the demand for domestic flights within the UK.
