Heathrow says it is “making good progress” in its attempts to find ways to pay for airport expansion without a major increase in passenger charges.
Airline groups, such as British Airways’ owner IAG, have raised concerns about their customers having to fund the airport’s third runway through increased airport charges. The estimated cost of the new runway is £18.6 billion.
John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow’s CEO, said that it was working with airlines to ensure that this charges were kept at “close to current levels”.
“The government set us the challenge to expand Britain’s hub while keeping airport charges close to current levels,” added Holland-Kaye.
“Working with airlines, we are making good progress to meet this challenge whilst delivering all our local commitments and the global connections our country needs.”
His comments came as Heathrow set another passenger record with passenger traffic rising by 3.9 per cent to 37.1 million for the first half of 2017.
Over the same period, the airport’s revenue increased by 4.1 per cent to £1.37 billion thanks to a 7.6 per cent rise in retail revenue per passenger, which went up to £8.43.
The airport’s pre-tax profit increased by 36 per cent to £102 million year-on-year.