Belfast International Airport departures today

The live board below shows today’s Belfast International Airport departures: scheduled time, estimated time, airline, destination and current status for every flight leaving Aldergrove today, updated continuously until each aircraft is airborne. Belfast International is Northern Ireland’s largest airport, with 6.8 million passengers in 2024, and the home of easyJet’s Northern Ireland base, joined by Jet2, Ryanair and TUI, so at almost any hour of the day there is a wave of departures to the British mainland or the sun on this board. Whether you are flying today, dropping someone off or checking whether a delay is real, today’s Belfast International flight departures are on this one page.

Before you fly: the right airport, how early, and where the queues are

First the check that matters most in Belfast: which airport. easyJet, Jet2, Ryanair and TUI fly from Belfast International at Aldergrove, 30 km north-west of the city. Aer Lingus Regional, British Airways, KLM and Loganair fly from George Best Belfast City Airport, 5 minutes from the centre, and easyJet flies from both, so for an easyJet flight the airport on the booking decides. The two are 40 minutes apart by road, so a booking with the wrong airport in mind is the one mistake this board cannot fix; our Belfast City departures board covers the other airport.

Belfast International has a single terminal: check-in and bag drop on the ground floor, security upstairs, and all gates beyond it. The airport advises 2 hours before a European flight and 3 hours before long-haul, and the advice is worth following in the first wave between 05:30 and 08:00, when easyJet pushes its based aircraft out towards Gatwick, Luton, Bristol, Manchester and Liverpool at once and Jet2 and Ryanair add their morning holiday departures on top. Outside that wave security is usually quick. Bag drop closes 40 to 60 minutes before departure for most airlines, and the walk to the furthest gates is about 10 minutes.

Reading the board: from Scheduled to Departed

The status column walks through a departure in order. Scheduled means the timetable still stands; Delayed means the estimated column is now the truth. Go to Gate and Boarding mean exactly what they say, Final Call means the gate is about to shut, Gate Closed means it has, and Departed means the aircraft has left. Gates are usually published 40 to 60 minutes before departure, so an empty gate field early in the day is normal.

Most delays at Aldergrove are imported rather than home-grown. The easyJet aircraft operating your 18:00 to Gatwick is usually the one that flew Gatwick to Belfast and back twice already that day, so a slow afternoon in the London stacks arrives here as a late evening departure. Jet2 and TUI holiday flights carry the same logic over a longer distance: a late departure from Alicante or Faro in the afternoon becomes a late departure from Belfast that evening, because the same aircraft flies both. The airport itself, with one runway and a moderate schedule, rarely causes the delay; Lough Neagh fog on winter mornings is the local exception.

Once a flight shows Departed, enter its flight number in the live flight radar on our homepage and you will see the aircraft as a moving symbol, with route, altitude and speed all the way to its destination. On the dedicated Belfast International flight radar you can watch departures climb out over the lough and turn for the Irish Sea. Meeting someone flying in instead? The Belfast International arrivals board does the same job in the other direction.

Getting to Aldergrove: the 300 bus and the £5 drop-off

There is no railway station at Belfast International. The Airport Express 300 bus links the terminal with Belfast city centre, calling at Belfast Grand Central Station and Europa Buscentre, every 12 to 15 minutes by day, from the early hours until late in the evening. By car the airport lies about 30 km north-west of the city centre, reached from the M2.

By car, here is what to know before you reach the forecourt: the barrier-controlled Drop Off zone outside the terminal costs £5 for up to 10 minutes since 9 March 2026, rising in steps to a maximum stay of 1 hour. The cheaper alternative is the Long Stay car park, a few minutes’ walk from the terminal, where the first 15 minutes are free for drop-offs; allow an extra 10 minutes for the walk. Charges change, so believe the signs on the day.

Frequently asked questions

How early should I be at Belfast International?

2 hours before a European flight and 3 hours before long-haul. In the morning wave between 05:30 and 08:00, when easyJet, Jet2 and Ryanair all depart at once, the full 2 hours are needed; later in the day security is usually quicker.

Does easyJet fly from Belfast International or Belfast City?

Mostly from Belfast International, where easyJet has its Northern Ireland base with flights to most British airports and a growing list of European destinations, but easyJet also flies from Belfast City, so check the airport on your booking. Our easyJet flight tracker explains how to find an easyJet aircraft on the radar by its U2 number.

Do I need a passport to fly to Great Britain from Belfast?

Flights to England, Scotland and Wales are domestic, so there is no passport control, but airlines require photographic identification at the gate, and a passport or driving licence is the safest choice. Flights to the Republic of Ireland and the rest of Europe are international.

Can I watch my flight after it has departed?

Yes: put the flight number into the radar on our homepage and follow it to its destination, or watch it climb out on the Belfast International flight radar page.