BAA TURNED IN a first-quarter pre-tax loss of £62 million - compared with a Q1/07 pre-tax profit of £89 million - with much of the shortfall being blamed on the Terminal 5 opening fiasco.
The early Easter break did not help, and neither did April's heavy snowfall, but the biggest hit came from nearly 500 flight cancellations, roughly half of which were caused by "operational difficulties in the first few days after the opening of Terminal 5."
First-quarter revenues were 8.8 per cent higher, from £465 million in Q1/07 to £506 million this year, but costs were more than 26 per cent higher, up from £263 million to £332 million, largely as a result of extra security measures.
Colin Matthews, BAA chief executive, said: "Our operating profit was clearly affected by higher security and maintenance costs, reflecting the importance we place on delivering a safe and convenient service to passengers, through higher standards and better facilities."