Heathrow connectivity collapses by two-thirds due to pandemic
Some six thousand air routes across Europe are yet to be restored nine months into the Covid-19 crisis, a new report reveals, with Heathrow’s connectivity collapsing by more than two-thirds.
The report, from Airports Council International, measures connectivity through a set of direct, indirect and hub indexes.
European and UK airports have been the hardest hit, with direct connectivity collapsing in April and then falling again as a ‘second spike’ saw a host of lockdowns across the continent.
Read more: Heathrow jumps legal hurdle on third runway but lack of demand suggests further delay
Madrid’s Barajas Airport has lost 71 per cent of its direct connectivity, the most in Europe. Heathrow has lost 68 per cent.
The report also reveals hub airports have been particularly badly hit, with their traditional role as changing points hit doubly hard by one connecting flight being removed from service.
Munich (-93 per cent) and Heathrow (-92 per cent) were the worst hit.
Olivier Jankovec, Director General of the ACI, said: “The damage is so systemic that relying solely on market forces to restore air connectivity would not be realistic. The EU and governments across Europe must urgently intervene to help jump-start it.”
Heathrow jumped a legal hurdle this week as the Supreme Court gave the go-ahead for construction to begin on the airport’s third runway, though questions remain about the speed to which aviation will recover.