February half-term fights from the UK are up by almost 600 per cent in a rush to take advantage of any further relaxation of Covid rules.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has indicated that remaining testing regulations will soon be lifted and the bookings boom comes ahead of the potential changes.
The number of flights has increased by a massive 591 per cent compared to February half-term 2021 - although they are still down 38 per cent on the previous year before most countries imposed Covid travel restrictions.
A study from aviation analyst Cirium reveals Spain is expected to be the most popular destination for holidaymakers with 1,354 flights over the period of February 14-20, followed by Ireland with 646 flights from the UK.
Some 8,304 international flights are scheduled to depart from the UK this February half-term – equating to more than 1.6 million seats
Last year's February half-term saw only 1,201 international departures from the UK, while 2020 saw a “significantly higher” 13,422.
Services between the UK and the Maldives have seen the biggest increase, with 133 per cent more services this forthcoming half-term compared to the same time in 2020.
Meanwhile, flights from the UK to China have plummeted by 94 per cent when comparing February half-term in 2022 with 2020 - the largest drop.
As the UK Government looks to scrap Day 2 arrival testing for fully vaccinated travellers, Cirium has analysed the number of flights and seats into the UK for this coming half-term.
It found 8,293 flights are set to land in the UK from international destinations - equating to 1,620,893 seats.
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