As lockdown restrictions ease once more, Gatwick Airport says today (May 17) has brought a total of 57 flights.
But a spokesman added that the quantity is far below the number recorded on the same day in 2019.
On that occasion, two years ago, Gatwick's flights totalled 830.
Almost half of today's departures, More Radio was told, were to countries on the government's Green List for international travel, and most were to Portugal
"Green List" status means that returning passengers will not be required to quarantine on arrival into the UK provided they can show a negative Covid test.
The spokesman continued:
"Today's number is only a fraction of the flights we saw on the same day in 2019.
"We expect a slow and steady start.
"Ultimately, we do not expect to get back to pre-pandemic passenger numbers until 2028 but today was an encouraging start after the most difficult time in the airport’s history."
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