British Airways and easyJet are two of the largest and most recognizable airline brands in the UK, and, while their operating models differ somewhat, with the former being a legacy flag carrier and the latter a budget operator, the rivalry between the pair is intense. In recent years, this has driven BA to adjust its short-haul offering in order to be more in line with the low-cost carriers that are providing stiff competition on European routes.
With this in mind, as we move into February and towards what will be a busy half-term holiday for both carriers, it’s as good a time as any to compare easyJet’s operations with those of British Airways to see which airline truly rules the UK skies. We shall do so using data from Cirium, an aviation analytics company.
The Domestic Market
A key contrast between easyJet and 
British Airways is the fact that the latter’s network is more London-centric. This is shown, as seen above, by its domestic offering, where every route either starts or ends in London at City (LCY), Gatwick (LGW), or Heathrow (LHR). All in all, BA has scheduled 3,697 domestic flights this February with an average of 166.2 seats per service, and its top route by frequency is Heathrow to Glasgow (GLA).
This month, BA will operate 10 daily rotations on this route. easyJet’s top domestic route by frequency from Bristol (BRS) to Edinburgh (EDI) only averages 4.5 daily rotations, but its internal network is bigger, with 5,291 flights and an average capacity of 175.5 seats. Unlike BA, and as shown by its top route linking Scotland with southwest England, easyJet has plenty of non-London corridors. Kevin Doyle, its UK Country Manager, said in 2025:
« In our 30th year, we’re still as committed as ever to making travel easy and affordable for our customers in the UK, where around 50 million will choose to fly with us this year. »
European International Flights
easyJet is also the dominant operator when looking at short-haul international flights within Europe. This February, the orange-clad low-cost carrier has planned a grand total of 16,084 flights in this market with an average capacity of 181 passengers apiece. Contrastingly, BA’s average capacity sits closer to 170 (and will be less in practice due to certain middle seats being blocked in business class) across a total of 13,342 flights.
Geneva (GVA) in Switzerland is by far and away easyJet’s top international destination by frequency, and this facility accounts for its top two routes on this front, with 209 rotations (7.5 a day) from London Gatwick Airport and 188 (6.7 a day) from London Luton (LTN). Elsewhere, London Gatwick to Milan Malpensa (MXP) and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS), and London Luton to Amsterdam, all average more than five rotations a day.
Interestingly, Geneva is also BA’s top short-haul European international destination by frequency, with the carrier having planned 312 rotations (a mean of 11.1 a day) from its Heathrow hub this month. It also serves the Swiss city from London Gatwick, London City, and even London Stansted (STN) with lower frequencies. Elsewhere, Amsterdam is also a big hitter for BA, with 232 rotations from Heathrow (8.3 a day) this February.
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Outside Europe
While easyJet outranks BA’s capacity in the domestic and European markets, the oneworld founding member does have a considerable edge when it comes to international flights outside of Europe. This is primarily thanks to the presence of widebodies in its fleet, which have the range and capacity to make long-haul flying viable. easyJet, meanwhile, is limited to medium-haul operations to Africa and the Middle East with its narrowbodies.
All in all, the orange-clad low-cost carrier has planned a grand total of 1,446 flights to and from non-European destinations this month, with an average capacity of 185.1 seats. Gatwick to Marrakech (RAK) is its top route, with 64 rotations (2.3 a day). BA, meanwhile, has scheduled 5,490 non-Europe legs with a mean of 271.8 seats, and its top long-haul route by frequency is Heathrow to New York JFK (216 rotations for a daily average of 7.7).