Heathrow Airport reported a lighter loss through the first 9 months of 2022 as opposed to the prior year and announced its intention to lift traffic restrictions.
London’s largest airport reported a loss of £442M ($512M) through the close of September, less than half the loss marked in the same period in 2021. Revenue, meanwhile, rose over 300% from the prior year period to £2.1B ($2.44B).
Throughout the summer, the airport reportedly serviced 18M customers, more than any airport on the European continent. The hub is forecast to see between 60M to 62M passengers pass through for the full year, approximately 75% of 2019 levels.
“Headwinds of a global economic crisis, war in Ukraine and the impact of COVID-19 mean we are unlikely to return to pre-pandemic demand for a number of years, except at peak times,” a statement nonetheless warned.
Elsewhere, the airport operator confirmed that it will remove a cap on passengers starting on October 30. By contrast, Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport will retain its cap through Spring 2023 .
“We have lifted the summer cap and are working with airlines and their ground handlers to get back to full capacity at peak times as soon as possible,” CEO John Holland-Kay said. “As we look to the future, we encourage the CAA to think again at stimulating the long-term investment that will deliver the smooth and predictable journeys consumer value most, rather than focusing on short-term pricing which we have seen only benefits airline profits.”
That said, restrictions could come back into play near peak travel times, such as the Christmas holiday.
European air carriers that could be impacted include easyJet ( OTCQX:EJTTF ), Ryanair ( NASDAQ: RYAAY ), Deutsche Lufthansa ( OTCQX:DLAKF ), Air France-KLM ( OTCPK:AFRAF ), SAS Group, Jet2 ( OTCPK:DRTGF ), Wizz Air ( OTCPK:WZZAF ), Finnair ( OTCPK:FNNNF ), Norwegian Air ( OTCPK:NWARF ), Icelandair Group (ICEAIR), and International Consolidated Airlines Group ( OTCPK:ICAGY ).
North American carriers that could be impacted include American Airlines ( AAL ), Air Canada ( OTCQX:ACDVF ), United Airlines ( UAL ), Delta Air Lines ( DAL ), and Cargojet ( OTCPK:CGJTF )
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Heathrow Airport trims losses, looks to lift passenger cap