Virgin Atlantic weighed into the airport expansion debate by calling for greater competition between airlines at Heathrow.
The carrier voiced support for Willie Walsh, chief of rival British Airways’ owner International Airlines Group, in his call for more competition at the west London hub.
But Virgin Atlantic argued that IAG carriers claimed more than half (54.7%) of the airport’s take off and landing slots last summer.
This gave IAG airlines a monopoly on 52 short haul routes such as Heathrow to Glasgow, Dublin and Barcelona and long haul on 21 routes including Bangalore, Buenos Aires and Chennai.
A Virgin Atlantic spokesman said: “We agree with Willie Walsh that Heathrow’s track record of delivering capital projects on time and on budget is not good enough. That’s why we have called for a ‘passenger cost guarantee’ ensuring passengers don’t foot the bill for expansion through higher charges.
“Willie is absolutely right to be concerned about a monopoly at Heathrow – what he fails to mention is that IAG operates more than half of Heathrow’s slots, so there are many routes that are only served by one of his airlines.
“Expansion must deliver a significant increase in airline competition to provide the choice and value that passengers deserve. Virgin Atlantic stands ready to play our part alongside other carriers.”
The Virgin Atlantic comments came as IAG reported a 3.2% rise in group traffic in January over the same month last year, outstripping a 2.8% increase in capacity. Passenger carryings were up to almost 7.2 million across the group’s airlines.
More: BA parent calls for radical plan to break up Heathrow’s ‘monopoly’