Strike action adds to a slide in traffic at BAA’s Heathrow
BAA reported a slowdown in the number of passengers visiting its airports last month after London’s biggest airport Heathrow was impacted by public sector strike action.
The airports operator said passenger numbers at Heathrow fell 0.5 per cent to 5.2 m, compared with the same time last year. An estimated 50,000 fewer passengers flew “after airlines reduced load factors in preparation for the strike.”
The number of travellers on domestic flights tumbled by 12.3 per cent year-on-year meaning passengers were down even after the impact of the Border Agency strike on 30 November was taken into account.
“This sustained domestic decline reflects the UK regions being progressively cut off from the UK’s only hub airport by a lack of capacity at Heathrow,” BAA claimed.
In total, the company said its airports, which also include Stansted, Glasgow and Aberdeen, handled BAA’s airports handled 7.8m passengers, down 0.9 per cent on the previous year.