Stansted airport handled thousands more flights last year as the industry battled back from the Covid pandemic, figures show.

Despite more flights entering and leaving the UK as a whole in 2021, the number of passengers fell to a record low, sparking criticism from environmental organisations over the impact on the climate of running emptier flights.

Civil Aviation Authority data shows 93,316 planes took off or landed at Stansted airport in 2021.

This was up eight per cent from 86,107 in 2020, which was the lowest number since comparable records began in 2010.

By comparison, there were 199,925 flights in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic.

Last year saw just 1.6 million flights to and from UK airports – the second-lowest number since 2010, but up from 1.5 million in 2020.

However, despite a rise in the number of flights nationally, the figures show the number of passengers passing through UK airports fell from 74.4 million to 65.4 million – the lowest on record.

This suggests planes were carrying fewer passengers than ever last year.

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Dr Doug Parr, chief scientist for Greenpeace UK, said: “The aviation industry is perfectly happy to release climate-wrecking emissions even when there aren’t enough passengers for them to make them any money from it.

“Anyone who claims that they’ll decarbonise without being legally compelled to do so is comically naïve.”

A total of 7.1 million passengers boarded or got off domestic or international flights at Stansted airport last year.

This was a decrease on the 7.5 million passengers who used the airport in 2020, and on 28.1 million in 2019.

The figures include arrivals and departures, and travellers who changed from one aircraft to another as part of the same journey.

Meanwhile, separate figures released by the Department for Transport show 14,500 so-called ‘ghost’ flights took place over a 19-month period during the pandemic.

The international flights, which had no more than 10 per cent of their seats filled, were operated mainly to transport cargo.

A DfT spokeswoman said: “Flights may operate with low passenger numbers for a whole range of reasons, including carrying key workers or vital cargo.

“However, we acted swiftly to prevent empty aircraft needing to fly solely to retain their slots.”