Former BA boss slams third runway plans : Heathrow Airport News

Bob Ayling, a former chief executive at British Airways, has written an article in the Times today suggesting that a third runway at Heathrow is not necessary, and not a good idea. In fact, in the article he calls it a ‘costly mistake’ that is ‘against the interests of Britain’ and a ‘flight of fallacy’ that 'is likely, in the long term, to prove a costly mistake.'

The Times says that Mr Ayling, who headed BA from 1996 to 2000, is the first significant figure from the aviation industry to come out against the plans. His opposition to the proposal for a third runway 'strikes at the heart of the government’s case that it is essential for the health of the country’s economy,' the newspaper says.

In an article in the Times today, Mr Ayling says that BAA, the operator of Heathrow, is pursuing a flawed 'hub and spoke' business model that has contributed to the bankruptcy and near collapse of numerous US and European airlines. He adds that this has also turned the airport into a ‘national disgrace’.

Mr Ayling says that the expansion of Heathrow is being driven by 'the misguided aspirations of British airlines' adding: ‘An expanded hub at Heathrow might not even be beneficial to British Airways. Transfer traffic in its own right is loss making. What Ruth Kelly and the government do not see is that transfer passengers, for whom such a hub would be built, spend no money in Britain, at least beyond the value of a cup of tea.'

He also says that the Civil Aviation Authority, the UK aviation regulator, has created a number of ‘perverse incentives’ for BAA to pursue expansion at all costs to boost the airport’s passenger and flight numbers. He told the Times: ‘BAA is an almost recession-proof business, paid by the number of flights and the number of passengers it can squeeze in and out of Heathrow.'

Mr Ayling’s solution to the problems at Heathrow involves cutting transfer flights so that it operates at 80% capacity instead of 99%, adding a runway at Stansted or Gatwick, breaking up BAA and stripping the Civil Aviation Authority of its role in regulating BAA.

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