Passenger numbers at both Heathrow and Frankfurt airports –
two if Europe’s busiest aviation hubs – were down 97 per cent in April as a
result of travel restrictions implemented to stop the spread of the
coronavirus.
Frankfurt carried only 188,078 passengers in April, 96.9 per
cent less than the same month last year. The total in the first four months of
2020 dropped by 45.7 per cent. With only 6,512 take-offs and landings in April,
air movements were also down 85.1 per cent, with the decline in passenger
flights and their available belly hold capacity leading to a 20.7 per cent fall
in metric tonnes of cargo.
Meanwhile, Heathrow saw 206,000 passengers, with routes to
the EU (67,000), Asia Pacific (48,000), Middle East (37,000) and North America
(27,000) being the busiest in April. Air transport movements were down 87.9 per
cent, with decreased passenger flights leading to a 61.7 per cent drop in cargo.
Heathrow airport CEO John Holland-Kaye criticised the UK
government’s decision to impose a 14-day quarantine on international
travellers, saying: “Aviation is the lifeblood of this country’s economy, and
until we get Britain flying again, UK businesses will be stuck in third gear.
The government needs to urgently lay out a roadmap for how they will reopen
borders once the disease has been beaten, and to take an immediate lead in
agreeing a common international standard for health in aviation that will allow
passengers who don’t have the infection to travel freely.”