News: BA calls for more capacity at London airports
Flights > News > # 1530 (17/10/2007)
British Airways chief executive Willie Walsh has called for airports owner BAA to be forced to increase the amount of passengers and planes it can handle.
British Airways wants BAA to be set new mandatory targets to increase capacity instead in order to prevent the chaos and overcrowding which has hit Heathrow in particular.
The Competition Commission is currently reviewing whether BAA – which owns Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports – operates a monopoly, with many airlines pressing for the company to be broken up.
Mr Walsh said: "If BAA gave commitments to capacity development and if the regulatory regime required them to deliver on those commitments, that may be an acceptable alternative and more practical alternative to them breaking up."
British Airways will argue for the increased regulation of BAA when it makes its submission to the Competition Commission by the end of this month.
Mr Walsh added a break-up of BAA should only be a last resort because of the disruption which would result.
British Airways, which operates two thirds of its flights from Heathrow, has been the airline worst hit by the overcrowding, although the lack of capacity should be eased in March when Heathrow’s terminal five opens.
A spokesman for BAA said: "We share British Airways' concerns about capacity, it is the key to improving the experience of passengers. Lack of capacity is at the heart of the problems facing airports in the South East. BAA has done a great deal to improve capacity where permitted. For example, we are about to hand over to BA, Heathrow terminal five, a brand new terminal that will handle 30 million passengers a year."
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