Heathrow Central station opened on 16 December 1977 as the final terminus of the Piccadilly line’s extension from Hounslow West to Heathrow Airport. The preceding station on the line - Hatton Cross - had opened as a temporary terminus in 1975.

At its opening, Heathrow Central station served as the terminus of what then became known as the Heathrow branch of the line. Previously the branch had been called the Hounslow branch. 1977 was the first time that an airport had been directly served by an underground railway system.

With the development of the airport’s Terminal 4, this station renamed Heathrow Terminals 1, 2, 3 on 6 October 1986. With the closure of Terminal 1, a new renaming occurred.