British Airways decides against empty airplanes

Unlike some of its competitors at London’s Heathrow Airport, British Airways has decided not to fly nearly empty airplanes on unpopular routes, just to ensure that the carrier is able to hold on to its much coveted landing slots at the United Kingdom’s busiest hub. This pledge appears to be in stark contrast to British Midland’s (BMI’s) strategy, which-as we reported last week-includes flying planes with very low load factors, despite the high cost of fuel. Tim Bye, the carrier’s deputy CEO, all but admitted last week that BMI flew so-called “ghost planes,” leading to sharp criticism from environmental lobby groups. The British discount carrier later issued a statement suggesting that Bye’s comments had been misinterpreted.

British Airways, however, appears very keen on avoiding a similar error and has stated in no uncertain terms that it will not fly ghost planes. Richard Tams, representing the UK’s flag carrier, noted that the company would not hesitate to cancel flights that are nearly empty, even if this means a loss of revenue on steeply priced seats or the potential loss of landing slots at Heathrow. Tams went on to point out that any cutbacks or cancellations that do take place would be “sensible” and that the airline would be especially mindful of the fact that many businesspeople rely on BA to transport them to important appointments. As such, one of BA’s top priorities will be to guarantee that businesspeople are not inconvenienced by any of these cancellations.

www.ba.com