Surveys at Guernsey Airport show one third of all British Airways passengers are new to Guernsey.
BA opened up the new States subsidised Heathrow Terminal 5 link in late April '26 with a once-a-day lunchtime service.
Air-side passenger surveys show the first weeks of the operation attracted new tourism business to Guernsey, while offering locals a different route into London or beyond.
Just over 9,600 people used the route in its first few weeks, and around 65% are visitors, with 35% making their first trip to Guernsey.
BA has boosted Guernsey Airport visitor numbers, which are now at 60% for May '26 - up 15% on the same period last year.
The weekend flights, and those on a Friday or Monday, are the most popular, with the Airbus around three-quarters full on average.
The impact on Aurigny has been described as 'small', but its Gatwick services saw a reduction of nearly 700 passengers in May, which is a 3% drop from one year ago.
The airline has cancelled some London City flights because of the distillation of the London market.
Economic Development negotiated the new route with BA, and its president, Sasha Kazantseva-Miller, is pleased with its performance so far:
"While it is too early to draw any firm conclusions, the early indications are very encouraging.
"May saw a higher proportion of visitors travelling through the airport and a higher proportion of new visitors through Heathrow specifically.
“While there has been a small effect on Gatwick, there has been a net positive growth of passengers overall with healthy load factors and the additional capacity, especially welcomed during peak travel, which has always been a congestion point."
She says she has heard that business people are also finding the flight convenient.
Visit Guernsey's Zoe Gosling says BA's immense marketing power is having a positive impact:
“Being able to tap into BA’s global reach is like gold dust for us, placing the islands in front of an audience of tens of millions who may not have considered us as a destination previously."
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