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easyJet backs Heathrow expansion campaign

Despite being Gatwick’s biggest customer, easyJet has publicly backed Heathrow’s runway expansion plans.

Should Heathrow win the rights to expand its existing runway, or build a new one, the low-cost airline will establish a base at the West London airport, according to the Financial Times.

An independent commission is currently reviewing applications to build a third runway at Heathrow, extend an existing one or build a second one at Gatwick. The decision is due later today.

Due to a lack of take-off and landing slots, Heathrow currently serves very few low cost airlines.

easyJet’s chief executive, Carolyn McCall, believes a third runway at Heathrow would increase the number of viable take-off and landing slots for the budget airline: “easyJet would open a base at Heathrow (in addition to our other existing London bases - Gatwick, Luton, Stansted and Southend) enabling easyJet to provide new routes and increase competition on dozens more UK and European routes.”

New services would include those to Inverness, Isle of Man and Jersey and increased services and more competition for Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Belfast as well as new and increased services for many other key cities including Amsterdam, Geneva and Zurich.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ellen Forster .