Baa News
Challenging market sees BAA traffic fall
Traffic at all but one of BAA’s British airports fell over the last year, with only Edinburgh Airport recording growth over the period. However, monthly figures suggest the worst could be past for the Spanish-owned infrastructure giant.
BAA to retain UK airports following appeal victory
The Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) has ruled BAA may maintain its present position in the UK market, quashing an earlier decision by the Competition Commission.
Watchdog vows to continue BAA break-up battle
The Competition Commission says it will continue its attempt to break up BAA’s airport portfolio, following a ruling by the Competition Appeal Tribunal that the forced sale of Stansted was unfair.
BAA warns of tough 2010
BAA has warned that it was facing a tough 2010 with Heathrow the only one of its six airports to register a rise in traffic. Its Scottish airports were badly hit by the collapse of Flyglobespan, as well as by adverse recent weather.
Glasgow airport gears up for 2014 Commonwealth Games
Glasgow airport has unveiled plans for a £25m expansion to boost capacity and improve passenger facilities ahead of 2014 when the city will be hosting the Commonwealth Games.
BAA agrees Gatwick airport sale
BAA has agreed to sell its 100% interest in Gatwick, the second busiest airport in the UK, to Global Infrastructure Partners for a fee of £1.51bn.
BAA appeals airport sale decision
BAA is launching an appeal against the UK Competition Commission’s order to make it sell three of its airports. The hearing starts later today.
Gatwick sale set for this week
Gatwick Airport could be in the hands of a new owner this week, as BAA moves closer to closing a deal with Global Infrastructure Partners, a joint venture between Credit Suisse and General Electric for an estimated £1.6 billion.
BAA shelves plans for Heathrow third runway
BAA has abandoned hopes of building a third runway at Heathrow in the face of staunch opposition from the Conservative party, saying it will not submit a planning application ahead of the general election in June.
“Golden age” of air travel at an end
The aviation sector has passed its “golden age” and is entering a period of decline, according to Monarch Airlines’ marketing director. Tim Jeans believes the last five years of low-cost start-ups and cheap fares is over. A combination of green taxes, fuel costs and a shift towards rail on short haul could spell the end of accessible air travel for all.
BAA unveils plans for £1bn eco Heathrow T2
BAA plans to more than triple capacity at Heathrow Terminal 2 by investing £1 billion in a new passenger building plus a housing facility for the Star Alliance group. The first phase of the new terminal building will be completed in 2013, increasing capacity to 20 million passengers a year from 10 million currently. By 2019, capacity will reach 30 million a year.
BAA losses widen but Gatwick disposal on track
BAA has highlighted the impact of the recession on air travel by reporting losses for the first half of 2009 widening from £135.3m to £545.7m. The airport operator also confirmed it remained in talks with several bidders over Gatwick but warned that it would not proceed with a sale unless the right was right.
Passenger decline eases at BAA airports
The number of travellers using major UK airports fell to its lowest level for nine months in June, according to new figures from BAA, with passenger numbers down 5.9%.
Rate of passenger decline eases at BAA airports
The number of travellers using major UK airports fell to its lowest level for nine months in June, according to new figures from BAA.The airport operator said a total of 12.7 million passengers passed through its airports last month, a reduction of 5.9% on the same period last year. But this represented the strongest underlying figure since last September, and suggesting that the worse could be over.
BAA traffic slides but could worst be over?
The number of passengers using BAA airports dropped by 7.3 percent in May compared to the same month last year, as the credit crunch and the weakness of sterling put off all but non-essential travel.Stansted was the worst performing of BAA’s seven airports, where traffic fell 18.5 percent as many airlines continued to cut capacity and leisure travellers pulled the reigns on short breaks and all non-essential travel.
T5 suffering from subsidence
Heathrow’s Terminal 5 building is suffering from subsidence, BAA has admitted. Just over a year since its opening, the airport owner has said the foundations are rising with floor tiles reported to have been repaired on the south side of the terminal.T5 was built on top of a former sewage plant on London clay, notorious for subsidence and movement, especially in the newly built properties.
BAA posts loss as passenger numbers fall
BAA saw a 10% fall in passengers at its London airports to 24.8 million in the first quarter - nearly three million fewer than a year earlier - due to the impact of recession and the worst snowfall for 18 years. In combination with other factors this lead to the company recording pre-tax losses of £316.5 million.
BAA received deflated bid for Gatwick plus no-show
BAA owner Ferrovial has confirmed it has received at least two bids for Gatwick airport. The offers come from Global Infrastructure Partners and a consortium led by Manchester Airport Group.Both bids are thought to be well below the £2bn plus initially hoped by BAA, and somewhere in the £1.3bn to £1.5bn range.
Gatwick expected to sell for 25 percent less
Three rival consortia will make bids for Gatwick today, but all offers are expected to be considerably below the £2bn plus tag originally sought by BAA.Analysts predict bids will range between £1.4bn and £1.5bn, well below the level of more than £2bn plus initially sought by BAA.
UK airport traffic plummets
Passenger numbers at the UK’s main airports have continued to spiral downwards, according to BAA. Passenger numbers at its seven airports, including Heathrow and Gatwick, fell 11.3 percent to 10.6m people in March.Gatwick was the worst hit, with passengers down by 17.7 percent, as airlines cuts service and passengers hold back on travel.
