An airport was opened on the site on 16 July 1938. During the Second World War, the airport was used by fighters of the Royal Air Force. Commercial activity and general aviation flight training at Luton resumed during 1952. By the 1960s, Luton Airport was playing a key role in the development of the package holiday business; by 1969, a fifth of all holiday flights from the UK departed from Luton Airport. From the mid-1960s, executive aircraft have been based at the airport. During the late 1970s, an expansion plan was initiated at Luton to accommodate as many as 5 million passengers per year, although the airport experienced a reduction in passenger numbers in the 1980s. In 1990, the airport was renamed London Luton Airport to re-emphasise the airport’s proximity to the capital. Whilst the first commercial flight to depart ‘London Airport’ was on 1st January 1946, the airport didn’t officially open until 31st May 1946, with passenger terminals made from ex-military marquees that formed a ‘tented village’ along the Bath Road.