Flying appears to be a lonely business, with many taking the plane on their own and very few passengers being waved off by friends or family.
As many as 49 per cent of passengers flying in and out of the UK's major airport last year travelled solo, according to a survey by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
Just four per cent were waved off from the terminal building, with the figure for business travellers being as low as two per cent.
Of the airports surveyed, London City had the highest proportion (74 per cent) of lone passengers last year, followed by Aberdeen with 72 per cent. East Midlands airport had the least number (24 per cent).
As many as 86 per cent of business travellers flew alone in 2013, with 64 per cent of those visiting friends or relatives also being lone travellers. Just 19 per cent of those flying off on holiday travelled on their own.
Thirteen airports, including Edinburgh and Glasgow, took part in the survey.
The survey revealed that London City had the highest proportion of passengers travelling for business (55 per cent), with the next highest being Heathrow (30 per cent).
The airport with the highest proportion of leisure passengers was found to be East Midlands airport, with 92 per cent.
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