Gatwick is to continue recruiting new staff as it predicts a “strong” summer with the airport’s South Terminal due to finally reopen on 27 March.
The London airport said it would benefit from the UK government’s “positive decision” on current slot rules and the relaxation of travel and testing restrictions.
Gatwick’s CEO Stewart Wingate also called for the government to remove all remaining Covid-19 travel restrictions, including the passenger locator form (PLF), which all arriving passengers currently have to fill in.
“Major announcements from our airlines about significantly increased flying schedules, and from government on airport slot regulations and the relaxation of travel restrictions, mean we are now looking forward to a strong summer,” added Wingate.
“We’re currently focused on reopening our South Terminal to ensure we can meet this expected strong demand and we are looking forward to welcoming back passengers in increasingly larger numbers.”
The airport said that an “encouraging end” to 2021 had helped to reduce its annual losses from £465.5 million in 2020 to £370.6 million last year.
Gatwick’s passenger total was only 6.3 million in 2021, due to the early part of the year being affected by lockdowns and a ban on international travel. This compared with 10.2 million travellers in 2020 and 46.6 million in the last pre-Covid year of 2019.
With demand expected to increase throughout 2022, Gatwick and its partners, including airlines, ground handlers, retailers and hospitality venues, have been recruiting for more than 2,000 new staff in recent months.
Gatwick’s short-haul network will benefit from the launch of British Airways’ new subsidiary, BA Euroflyer, from later this month with 18 aircraft serving 35 routes.
BA has also leased some of its Gatwick slots to easyJet, which will operate its highest-ever capacity from the airport this summer with 79 aircraft flying on 120 routes. Wizz Air and Vueling are also expanding their services from the airport.
Gatwick is benefiting from the return of long-haul services, including the addition of JetBlue flights to New York and Singapore Airlines’ subsidiary Scoot's route to Bangkok. While Emirates has increased Dubai flights to double daily.
“The rebounding of international connectivity toward pre-pandemic levels will boost job and business opportunities, which is great news for many in our local communities and beyond,” added Wingate.
“However, fully restoring consumer confidence will take time and I urge government to make 2022 the year when all travel restrictions are removed completely, including the unpopular passenger locator form.”