London Stansted Airport began life as an airbase in 1943, became an international airport serving over 25million people a year and by 2024 will have state-of-the-art terminals thanks to a £600million upgrade.
And these incredible pictures show the entire transformation.
One of the earliest images shows a pair of US Air Force B-26 Marauders preparing to take off from Stansted during the Second World War.
While pictures taken during the 1960s and 70s show how the hub welcomed in the jet age and thousands in 1983 swarming around the space shuttle Enterprise, which visited on the back of a 747.
In 1991, the airport received a royal seal of approval when the Queen officially opened the new Lord Norman Foster terminal while in recent times Stansted has welcomed Air Force One and presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump.
Scroll down for the fascinating past, present and future of the airport.
London Stansted Airport started life as an air force base during the Second World War. The runway was built in 1942 by the Americans. Pictured is the airfield in 1943
On D-Day in 1944 bombers from Stansted led more than 600 aircraft over the beaches of occupied France. Pictured is a map of the airfield in 1943
B-26 Marauders that were flown by the American Air Force were based at Stansted during the war
Men from the USAAF Eighth Air Force crowd around one of the aircraft that was stationed at Stansted during the early 1940s
During the Second World War the airfield was called RAF Stansted Mountfitchet. Pictured is a B-26 Marauder at the time
Members of the US Air Force’s 344th Bomb Group pose for a picture sitting on top of ammunition at Stansted during the Second World War
This wartime picture shows officers relaxing outside a hut at the airfield with bicycles propped up nearby. The bike was the principal form of transport during the war because of strict petrol rationing
Pictured is an aerial shot of the airfield in 1947, long before duty free shops and Ryanair flights
At the end of the war, the base was handed back to the Civil Aviation Authority and became home to many of Britain’s charter airlines
A converted wartime Nissen hut (a tunnel-shaped hut made of corrugated iron) served as the terminal building in the 50s and 60s. At this time, the airport was beginning to welcome more and more travellers
The first jet arrived in March 1961 after the runway was lengthened – this is the first picture. It’s the inaugural flight of Dutch carrier KLM’s new service to New York Idlewild Airport (now JFK Airport)
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines was founded in 1919. The carrier no longer serves Stansted Airport
KLM staff greet passengers boarding Thomas Alva Edison’s (that’s the aircraft’s name) maiden departure to New York in 1961
Pictured at some point in the 1960s are aircraft owned by the American Flyers Airline, which operated charter flights
In 1969, the Nissen huts from the Second World War were replaced when a brand new terminal building opened to passengers
The new departure lounge in the brand new terminal that opened in 1969 also included an outside seating area, pictured
By the late 1960s the airport was beginning to grow at an astonishing rate as this aerial shot shows
A Jaguar parked outside the airport in the 1960s, which then was called Stansted Airport London
Passengers crowd around a baggage carousel to wait for their suitcases in a picture taken in the 1970s
An aerial shot showing the entrance to the terminal building in 1978. In this year, a Government White Paper, ‘Airport Policy’, proposed a major expansion of Stansted
Passengers wait in line to check in for their flights while others relax on the airport seating in an image dated to 1980
Passengers pictured negotiating Stansted security in 1981. Security at airports wasn’t really taken seriously until the 1970s
Passengers board a Braathens Safe flight in the early 1980s. Braathens was a Norwegian airline that merged with SAS in 2004
On 5 June, 1983, the space shuttle Enterprise touched down at the airport as part of a European tour
An aerial shot showing the huge crowds that turned out to see the space shuttle at Stansted. It is estimated 200,000 people caught a glimpse of the shuttle, which was transported on the back of a modified Boeing 747
A Flying Tigers 747 freighter is pictured at Stansted in 1983. The cargo is being loaded through the plane’s nose cone. Today over 250,000 tonnes of freight is shipped through the airport each year
A busy terminal forecourt in 1984. Work started on revamping the airport in 1986
Actor Nicolas Lyndhurst poses for the camera during a shoot for BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses at Stansted’s arrivals hall in the 1980s
An aerial shot showing Stansted’s new terminal building taking shape in 1989. The expansion followed a public enquiry in 1985 lasting 258 days. The Government gave permission for development to accommodate 15 million passengers a year. An early motion by 75 MPs led to a compromise of phased development to eight and then 15 million passengers with a cap on the number of take-offs and landings by passenger aircraft
Passengers check-in in 1985 for an American Trans Air flight. ATA was the USA’s largest charter airline at the time
Once the new £400million terminal building was completed in 1991 it was officially opened by The Queen, pictured
As well as the Queen’s visit, a huge cake was cut to mark the opening of the new terminal building, which was designed by Lord Norman Foster
Many sports teams visiting London will often fly into Stansted Airport. Pictured is David Beckham in 2006 arriving at Stansted with his Real Madrid teammates
In 2007 construction work begun on a £40 million project to extend the main terminal building at Stansted to accommodate even more passengers
From 1997 to 2007, Stansted saw rapid growth of passenger numbers on the back of the boom in low cost air travel. Pictured is Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary marking the opening of a route between Stansted and Santiago in Spain
The airport has been the backdrop to many blockbuster films. Pictured is Oscar winner Dustin Hoffman filming Last Chance Harvey in 2008
Many US presidents who visit the UK fly in and out of Stansted Airport on Air Force One. Pictured is President Barack Obama boarding his flight at Stansted in 2009
In 2012, Olympic fever hit when a London 2012 shop opened in the terminal. Many athletes and fans used the airport to get to the Games
Actor David Hasselhoff paid a visit to Stansted while filming TV comedy show Hoff the Record in 2014
In 2016 an £80 million transformation delivered a new departure lounge, award winning bars, restaurants and new executive lounge
In June 2018, Emirates started direct flights to Dubai from London Stansted. The flight is the airport’s first daily service to the United Arab Emirates
In July 2018, US president Donald Trump paid a visit to the UK and flew into Stansted on Air Force One alongside First Lady Melania
In 2018 the airport teamed up with Harlow College and opened the UK’s first aviation skills college
Today, Stansted employs 12,000 people and is one of the fastest growing airports in Europe. Pictured are planes around the terminal building
An aerial shot showing how Stansted looks today. It is investing £600 million over the next five years to deliver the biggest upgrade to the airport since the iconic Lord Norman Foster terminal opened in 1991
An artist’s impression showing how the new arrivals terminal at Stansted will look once it is completed by 2020
The new state-of-the-art arrivals facility, pictured, will span three levels and will see all arriving passengers use this dedicated terminal for immigration, baggage reclaim and onward connections