A major airline has celebrated reaching a huge milestone with it now having flown 250 million passengers to and from Gatwick Airport since it first began flights there.

easyJet first began flying from Gatwick Airport back on December 16, 1999, before opening a base there in 2002.

That very first flight was to Geneva which the airline says continues to be among its most popular destinations alongside Amsterdam, Paris, Milan and Faro.

In present times, easyJet operates 68 aircraft from Gatwick and carries almost 20 million passengers a year on 102 routes.

The Argus: easyJet rewarded two passengers who helped the overall number of passengers reach 250 millioneasyJet rewarded two passengers who helped the overall number of passengers reach 250 million (Image: easyJet)

How did easyJet celebrate Gatwick milestone?

As a way to celebrate the milestone, easyJet surprised two of their passengers who were flying from Gatwick to Rhodes who helped the overall passenger number tick to 250 million.

Amy Lovegrove and Richard Hansen from Crawley were gifted with free return flights as part of this.

Ali Gayward, easyJet’s UK Country Manager said: “We are so proud to be in London Gatwick marking a key milestone as we celebrate flying 250 million passengers to and from the airport.

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"Our first flights from the airport took off for the first time almost 25 years ago and since then we’ve been committed to Gatwick in providing great value fares and convenient connections for our customers from across the South East whether they’re travelling for business or leisure.

Mark Johnston, Chief Operating Officer, London Gatwick, said: “It is fantastic to see easyJet reach such a momentous milestone at London Gatwick after many successful years of operations.

“easyJet’s presence at London Gatwick is significant and we will continue working collaboratively with them to further grow a diverse choice of routes and deliver a great airport experience to passengers.”