- READ MORE: Fury as Heathrow hotel charges passengers £9.99 for beer bottle
By Milo Pope
Published: | Updated:
Heathrow Airport passenger charges could be cut by up to six per cent in the next two years, a regulator has announced.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said it is proposing to adjust the caps on charges it previously set for 2025 and 2026 following a ‘re-examination’ of its decision in March last year.
This comes after air passengers were warned they will face higher fares and longer journeys in October last year as air traffic control charges for airlines were raised from £47 to £64 per flight.
Charges are paid by airlines but are generally passed on to passengers in air fares.
If the proposals are implemented following a six-week consultation, average charges per passenger would be cut by around £1.52 to £23.72 in 2025, and by £1.58 to £23.70 in 2026.
Heathrow Airport passenger charges could be cut by up to six per cent [Stock image of Heathrow Airport]
This is after the Competition and Markets Authority ordered the CAA to reconsider some aspects of its decision.
Fury as Heathrow hotel charges passengers £9.99 for a bottle of beer
The CAA looked again at the airport’s revenues during coronavirus lockdowns, as well as the impact of its debt and pension costs.
The average charge per passenger was £31.57 in 2022 and 2023 and it was forecast to be £25.43 this year.
Heathrow rebounded to profit for the first time in four years in 2023 after passenger levels jumped by nearly 29 per cent to 79.2 million, the third-highest in its history.
It recorded a £38million adjusted pre-tax profit, compared to a £684million loss the prior year when staff shortages and delays led to the travel hub imposing a daily passenger cap over the busy summer period.
The airport expects to attract a record 81.4 million passengers in 2024, underpinned by travel demand continuing to recover despite widespread cost-of-living pressures.
Average charges per passenger could be cut by around £1.52 to £23.72 in 2025, and by £1.58 to £23.70 in 2026 [Stock image of Heathrow Airport]