Heathrow Airport [4] called London Airport until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow[5] is

the main international airport serving London, the capital of the United Kingdom. It is the largest of
the six international airports in the London airport system (the others
being Gatwick, City, Luton, Stansted and Southend). The airport is owned and operated
by Heathrow Airport Holdings. In 2022, it was the second-busiest airport in the world by international
passenger traffic and the busiest airport in Europe as per March 2023.[6] It is also the airport with the
world's most international connections as of 2023.[7]
Heathrow was founded as a small airfield in 1929 but was developed into a much larger airport
after World War II. It lies 14 miles (23 kilometres) west of Central London on a site that covers 4.74
square miles (12.3 square kilometres). It was gradually expanded over 75 years and now has two
parallel east–west runways, four operational passenger terminals and one cargo terminal.[5] The
airport is the primary hub for British Airways and Virgin Atlantic.

Heathrow Airport began in 1929 as a small airfield (Great West Aerodrome) on land southeast of the
hamlet of Heathrow from which the airport takes its name. At that time the land consisted of
farms, market gardens and orchards; there was a "Heathrow Farm" approximately where the
modern Terminal 2 is situated, a "Heathrow Hall" and a "Heathrow House." This hamlet was largely
along a country lane (Heathrow Road), which ran roughly along the east and south edges of the
present central terminals area.
Development of the whole Heathrow area as a much larger airport began in 1944 during World War
II. It was intended for long-distance military aircraft bound for the Far East. By the time some of the
airfields runways were usable, World War II had ended, and the UK Government continued to
develop the site as a civil airport. The airport was opened on 25 March 1946 as London Airport. The
airport was renamed Heathrow Airport in the last week of September 1966, to avoid confusion with
the other two airports which serve London, Gatwick and Stansted.[8] The design for the airport was
by Sir Frederick Gibberd. He set out the original terminals and central-area buildings, including the
original control tower and the multi-faith Chapel of St George's.