Planes overhead in EC3A
City of London, London. All 51 of its postcodes measured (15 PO boxes and other large-user postcodes left out), January to August 2026.
For Heathrow's expansion consultation, open until 22 December 2026: the planes over City of London, council by council.
From London City
Planes land and take off into the wind, so the weather decides which way London City flies, and that decides how many pass over EC3A. Across its postcodes, January to August 2026:
On a day it flies west, 47% of days
Up to 1
a day
Of its 51 postcodes:
- under 10
- 51
On a day it flies both ways, 18% of days
Up to 28
a day
Of its 51 postcodes:
- on an edge
- 36
- under 10
- 15
On a day it flies east, 35% of days
Up to 61
a day
Of its 51 postcodes:
- on an edge
- 43
- under 10
- 8
Each sector's bar splits its postcodes by how many planes pass over them a day; the figure above it counts those in the busiest band the sector reaches. The list above gives the whole district's counts.
| Sector | Flying west47% of days | Both ways18% of days | Flying east35% of days |
|---|---|---|---|
| EC3A 11 postcode | 1 under 10 | 1 on an edge | 1 on an edge |
| EC3A 23 postcodes | 3 under 10 | 3 on an edge | 3 on an edge |
| EC3A 33 postcodes | 3 under 10 | 3 on an edge | 3 on an edge |
| EC3A 42 postcodes | 2 under 10 | 2 on an edge | 2 on an edge |
| EC3A 513 postcodes | 13 under 10 | 13 on an edge | 13 on an edge |
| EC3A 65 postcodes | 5 under 10 | 2 on an edge | 2 on an edge |
| EC3A 714 postcodes | 14 under 10 | 7 on an edge | 11 on an edge |
| EC3A 810 postcodes | 10 under 10 | 5 on an edge | 8 on an edge |
From Heathrow
Planes land and take off into the wind, so the weather decides which way Heathrow flies, and that decides how many pass over EC3A. Across its postcodes, January to August 2026:
On a day it flies west, 56% of days
Up to 40
a day
Of its 51 postcodes:
- 10 to 99
- 51
On a day it flies both ways, 15% of days
Up to 29
a day
Of its 51 postcodes:
- 10 to 99
- 51
On a day it flies east, 29% of days
Up to 1
a day
Of its 51 postcodes:
- under 10
- 51
Each sector's bar splits its postcodes by how many planes pass over them a day; the figure above it counts those in the busiest band the sector reaches. The list above gives the whole district's counts.
| Sector | Flying west56% of days | Both ways15% of days | Flying east29% of days |
|---|---|---|---|
| EC3A 11 postcode | 1 at 10 to 99 | 1 at 10 to 99 | 1 under 10 |
| EC3A 23 postcodes | 3 at 10 to 99 | 3 at 10 to 99 | 3 under 10 |
| EC3A 33 postcodes | 3 at 10 to 99 | 3 at 10 to 99 | 3 under 10 |
| EC3A 42 postcodes | 2 at 10 to 99 | 2 at 10 to 99 | 2 under 10 |
| EC3A 513 postcodes | 13 at 10 to 99 | 13 at 10 to 99 | 13 under 10 |
| EC3A 65 postcodes | 5 at 10 to 99 | 5 at 10 to 99 | 5 under 10 |
| EC3A 714 postcodes | 14 at 10 to 99 | 14 at 10 to 99 | 14 under 10 |
| EC3A 810 postcodes | 10 at 10 to 99 | 10 at 10 to 99 | 10 under 10 |
On an edge: the postcode is on the edge of a flight path, where a few metres decide whether a plane counts as overhead, and the fewest and the most within 100 m of it fall in different bands.
What counts as overhead
Overhead means more than halfway up the sky (48.5 degrees or more) and below 7,000 ft, the CAA's definition of an overflight (CAP 1498). A day counts as one way when 80% of its flights used that way. PO boxes and other postcodes for organisations that receive a lot of post are left out: they sit at a delivery office or a business, not at homes.
Near EC3A
EC3M EC3N EC2N EC2M EC3V EC3R EC2R EC4N
The councils
Where these figures come from
Counted from community flight tracking, checked against the CAA's monthly totals for London City and Heathrow. Flight tracks: adsb.lol (ODbL 1.0); Weather at each airport: Iowa Environmental Mesonet; Ground heights: Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right; Postcode positions: ONS National Statistics Postcode Lookup (OGL). Licence: Open Database License (ODbL) 1.0.