Heathrow Airport hits historic footfall but urges UK to ‘rethink anti-growth policies’ like tourist tax
The busiest start to a year in its history has seen London’s Heathrow Airport turn a £83m profit through the first three months of 2024.
According to the company’s first quarter results, released this morning, 18.5m passengers travelled through the West London-hub between January 1st and March 31st.
This was primarily down to East Asian tourist visits growing 40 per cent year-on-year and growth on key business routes such as Delhi and Mumbai.
The boosts swung the group from a £60m loss during the same period last year to £83m profit this year year.
From a revenue standpoint, the period returned £808m, a slight downturn on the £814m from a year prior, and net debt ticked down to £14.6bn.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also fell, down to £443m.
The company behind Heathrow said that it has “strong liquidity” of £3.8bn and that it remained focused on delivering efficiencies to close the £400m gap in the H7 settlement set by the Civil Aviation Authority.
The firm added that no dividends are currently forecast for 2024, although it is “plausible subject to financial performance,” and will be reviewed throughout the year.
As a result of the unexpectedly strong start to the year, the company has bumped its 2024 passenger outlook to 82.4m.
However, it contends that government minister need to “rethink anti-growth policies” like the tourist tax and unnecessary travel visas that “risk the UK’s global connectivity and Heathrow’s hub status”.
Other changes at the company include the move of Javier Echave from business finance director to chief operating officer on 26 April, and Ross Baker from chief commerical officer to chief customer officer on 1 May.
Echave said: “It has been a successful start to the year thanks to colleagues delivering a consistent, reliable service to our passengers.
“As I close the chapter on eight years as chief financial officer, I’m proud that Heathrow is on a strong financial footing with a clear flightpath ahead.
“On the horizon is Heathrow’s busiest summer yet with more passengers and destinations served than ever before and we’re ready to continue delivering.”
The results come days after Heathrow refuelling staff announced that they will strike in May meaning flights will be delayed and potentially severe disruption over the bank holiday weekend.