Heathrow scores record April after power outage upheaval
London's Heathrow Airport bounced back from the major power outage suffered in late March to record its busiest ever April, thanks to bumper Easter holiday demand.
Around 7.1 million people came through Europe's busiest airport last month, compared to 6.7 million in April 2024.
It follows an electrical substation fire - the cause of which is still unknown - that led to a power outage at Heathrow and over 1,300 flight cancellations.
But nearly 1 million passengers flew through the British Airways hub during the most recent Easter weekend, which ran from 18 to 21 April, and included over 140,000 people landing on Easter Monday.
Italian destinations performed exceptionally well, with record demand for Florence and Venice, the airport said.
More than 2.4 million passengers travelled between Heathrow and the European Union, a 4.7 per cent year-on-year rise, while the numbers journeying to or from North America were 5.5 per cent higher at 1.75 million.
Since then, the total number of people flying on the Heathrow-New York JFK route hit the million mark year-to-date in record time.
Thomas Woldbye, chief executive of Heathrow, said: 'Last month showed Heathrow at its very best - we successfully navigated our busiest April ever whilst our service levels took a further leap forward.
'We're providing great value for our passengers and I'm proud of what we've achieved in collaboration with our Team Heathrow partners so far this year.
'We're now firmly focused on the busy summer ahead and work is underway across the airport to ensure we continue delivering for our customers.'
Heathrow's announcement comes a few days after BA revealed it lost £40million from the power outage that hit the airport on 21 March.
Last week, the UK Government's National Energy System Operator (NESO) confirmed that electricity was restored to Heathrow just before 11am, but flights did not take off again until about 6pm.
A further report on the matter is expected to be released later this month.
Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: 'Air travel appears to have been immune to the trade turmoil unleashed by Trump on Liberation Day, and the sharp falls in stock markets.'
'Even though it appeared to lead to a fresh crisis of confidence among businesses, it's done little to dent demand for trips away.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
21 minutes ago
- Reuters
Longtime Motel 6 spokesman Tom Bodett sues chain over using his name, voice
NEW YORK, June 10 (Reuters) - Tom Bodett, known for his radio and TV ads telling travelers that at Motel 6 "we'll leave the light on for you," has sued the motel chain for using his name and voice without permission, after their nearly four-decade relationship broke down. In a complaint filed on Monday night in Manhattan federal court, Bodett said he cut ties with Motel 6 after its new owner, India-based OYO, missed a $1.2 million annual payment due on January 7 under their contract, which was to end in November. Bodett said Motel 6 nonetheless kept using his name and voice on its national reservation phone line, violating his rights under the contract and federal trademark law. The 70-year-old author and voice actor is known for appearances on National Public Radio and in several Ken Burns documentaries, as well as for his smooth baritone. Bodett said he tried negotiating a confidential settlement that would recognize his role in building Motel 6, not hurt its image or franchisees, and provide "graceful closure," but the chain responded only with "misrepresentations, obfuscations, and delay tactics." The lawsuit seeks $1.2 million, plus additional unspecified damages and a share of profits. Motel 6 had no immediate comment on Tuesday. Bodett had been Motel 6's lead spokesman since 1986, and said he coined "we'll leave the light on for you" as an ad-lib. Motel 6 has more than 1,450 locations in the United States and Canada, according to its website. OYO is a global travel technology unit of Oravel Stays ( opens new tab, which bought Motel 6 from Blackstone Real Estate for $525 million in December. The case is Bodett et al v G6 Hospitality LLC et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 25-04854.
BBC News
27 minutes ago
- BBC News
Roads disruption warning ahead of Nottingham Open tennis tournament
Drivers are being warned of disruption ahead of the Nottingham Open tennis Highways has advised people to allow extra time for journeys if travelling to the event at the Lexus Nottingham Tennis Centre between 14 and 22 improvement scheme is currently taking place along the A52 Derby Road between the Priory and Queens Medical Centre roundabouts, with the westbound carriageway closed to all is a one-way system for eastbound traffic heading towards Nottingham and westbound traffic will follow a signed diversion route via Dunkirk Island, University Boulevard and Woodside Road. National Highways said tennis visitors are likely to see increased congestion, particularly along the diversion route.
The Independent
27 minutes ago
- The Independent
Rachel Reeves slashing spending by £5bn in ‘austerity 2.0'
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to announce Labour's spending plans on Wednesday, but analysis suggests she will need to make £5bn in cuts by 2028/29. The cuts are expected across unprotected departments like housing, policing, and local government, excluding NHS England, core schools budget, and defence, with Labour critics dubbing the plans 'austerity 2.0'. The Home Office is expected to bear the brunt of spending cuts, potentially impacting police numbers despite pledges to cut crime. The analysis, commissioned by the Lib Dems, assumes Reeves will not hike taxes and was made before committing £1.25bn to restore winter fuel payments to pensioners. Lib Dems criticised the expected cuts, urging the Labour government to boost growth and avoid spending shortfalls, suggesting a UK- EU Customs Union to boost the economy.
