Belfast is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 10th-largest primary urban area in the United Kingdom and the second-largest city in Ireland. It had a population of 345,418 in 2021.
Belfast is still a port with commercial and industrial docks, including the Harland & Wolff shipyard, dominating the Belfast Lough shoreline. It also has a major aerospace industry. It is served by two airports: George Best Belfast City Airport, 3 miles (5 kilometres) from the city centre, and Belfast International Airport 15 miles (24 kilometres) west of the city. The Globalization and World Cities Research Network listed Belfast as a Gamma + global city in 2020.
