Heathrow warns on quarantine impact as passenger numbers plunge
Heathrow warned the UK's quarantine rules were "strangling" the economic recovery as the airport reported passenger numbers down more than 80% in the peak month of August.
The airport said 1.4m travelled via Heathrow in August, less than a fifth of last year's total. It said government restrictions were hitting passenger and cargo activity and called for a change of approach.
Long-haul markets, critical for UK exporters, inbound tourism and investment, are closed because of the government's 14-day quarantine policy, Heathrow said. North American passenger numbers are down 95% from a year ago.
Cargo at Heathrow fell 34% to 88 metric tonnes in August despite a jump in dedicated cargo flights to 1,923 from 218, the airport said. It said businesses were struggling to get their products to markets because of government restrictions.
The UK is imposing 14-day quarantines on people arriving from countries judged to be Covid-19 hotspots - an approach the travel industry says is damaging and unnecessary. Heathrow said more than 30 airports in other countries were using testing as a safe alternative to quarantines and urged the government to follow.
Heathrow said Frankfurt airport had overtaken it and warned the UK's economy would fall behind if its trading network was not maintained. It said a switch to testing at airports would help protect millions of jobs in the aviation industry threatened by the Covid-19 crisis.
John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow's chief executive, said: "Heathrow's traffic figures for August demonstrate the extent to which quarantine is strangling the economy, cutting British businesses off from their international markets and blocking international students, tourists and investors from coming here to spend money."
The government has said it is reviewing options for reducing quarantine for passengers who test negative for Covid-19. Holland-Kaye said ministers need to act urgently to protect jobs and businesses.