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London Biggin Hill Airport is a business and general aviation airport in the London Borough of Bromley, some 12 nautical miles south-southeast of central London. Once one of the most famous RAF fighter stations of the Battle of Britain, it is now a dedicated hub for private and business jet traffic with a single hard-surfaced instrument runway.
London Biggin Hill Airport, identified as EGKB, sits in the London Borough of Bromley and describes itself as the only dedicated business aviation airport in London. It handles a mix of private aviation and large business jets rather than scheduled airline services, and its long association with the RAF gives it a strong claim on any pilot's attention for its Battle of Britain heritage as much as for its modern role as a London gateway for corporate flying.
The airport lies about 12 nautical miles south-southeast of central London, within the London Borough of Bromley. It sits close to the area once served by the former London Airport at Croydon, much of whose civilian light aviation traffic transferred to Biggin Hill after Croydon's closure in 1959. Given its proximity to central London and the presence of approach, radar and tower services, pilots should expect to operate within controlled airspace associated with the London area and to work with Thames Radar and Biggin Hill's own air traffic services when routing to or from the field.
The airport has a single physical runway, 03/21, of hard construction and lit. Runway 21 is 5,903 feet long and equipped with an ILS, while runway 03 is 5,117 feet long. Field elevation is 545 feet.
Biggin Hill provides a full suite of radio services: Tower on 134.805 MHz, Ground on 121.63 MHz, ATIS on 135.68 MHz, Approach on 129.405 MHz, and Radar (Thames Radar) on 132.7 MHz. Runway 21 is served by an ILS. The airport's own site also notes a Civil Aviation Authority authorised trial of a new instrument approach for Runway 03, which entered its full trial phase from 14 May 2026 for suitably equipped aircraft and operators.
The airfield began life during the First World War, opened by the Royal Flying Corps, which transferred there on 13 February 1917 from RAF Joyce Green near Dartford, establishing it within the London Air Defence Area on land including the Cudham Lodge estate. It defended the capital against Zeppelin and Gotha bomber raids, with No. 141 Squadron RFC based there flying Bristol Fighters. Nearby Aperfield Court was requisitioned as a radio transmitter and fighter ground control station before being demolished in 1920, after which the aerodrome expanded onto its grounds. Between the wars the station hosted experimental units working on instrument design, anti-aircraft defence and night flying, and was closed for reconstruction, including new hangars, between 1929 and 1932. During the Second World War Biggin Hill was one of the key bases of No. 11 Group, RAF Fighter Command, flying Spitfires and Hurricanes through the Battle of Britain; squadrons based there claimed 1,400 enemy aircraft destroyed, at the cost of 453 Biggin Hill-based aircrew. Its importance made it a Luftwaffe target, and it was attacked twelve times between August 1940 and January 1941, with one raid wrecking workshops, stores, barracks and a hangar and killing 39 people on the ground. The station was also used by RAF Balloon Command during the war. After 1945 it served RAF Transport Command and then regular and reserve fighter squadrons flying Spitfires, Meteors and Hunters, until a fatal accident involving the loss of three Meteors in June 1951 prompted a review of its continued military use. In 1958 it ceased RAF flying operations and became the RAF Officer and Aircrew Selection Centre, with much of Croydon's civil light aviation relocating there from 1956 as Croydon's closure approached; Croydon shut completely in 1959, leaving Biggin Hill as a mainly civilian field with only occasional military flying. Numerous RAF squadrons were based there over the decades, including Nos. 1, 3, 19, 23, 32, 37, 39, 41, 56, 64, 66, 72, 74, 78, 79, 91, 92, 124, 133, 154, 213, 222, 229 and 242 Squadrons. The London Borough of Bromley purchased the airfield from the Board of Trade era authorities following a decisive council vote in June 1972, and in May 1994 the airport was leased for 125 years to Biggin Hill Airport Limited. The RAF's last active presence ended in 1992 when the Officer and Aircrew Selection Centre moved to RAF Cranwell, though a small enclave on the airport still retains the RAF Biggin Hill designation.
Biggin Hill now operates as a general aviation and business aviation airport with no regular scheduled airline service, specialising in private and corporate jet traffic. It holds a CAA Ordinary Licence permitting public transport flights and authorised flying instruction. Published opening times are 0630 to 2300 hours local on weekdays and 0800 to 2200 hours local at weekends and on public holidays. The airport is currently trialling a new CAA-authorised instrument approach for Runway 03, open to suitably equipped aircraft and operators.
