A review of the economic regulation of Heathrow in the advent of a third runway is to be conducted by the aviation regulator.
The Civil Aviation Authority will consider options to ensure the regulatory model provides “strong incentives for the efficient delivery of the substantial costs involved in expansion and how to best protect the interests of consumers”.
The move came as a group of airlines joined forces to demand an “urgent and fundamental review” of Heathrow’s costs under the Heathrow Reimagined umbrella after the government backed expansion of the London hub.
The disclosure came as the CAA outlined its approach to the economic regulation of Heathrow from 2027 to 2031.
This includes how charges for the airport will be set and ensure that consumers and airlines face fees that are “no higher than necessary”.
The CAA pointed out that regulation of Heathrow “will seek to protect passengers and pave the way for sustainable growth”.
The review process will consider how Heathrow is expected to take consumer and environmental considerations into account when developing its future business plan.
“The review will allow for efficient investment that will deliver benefits for consumers, by incentivising efficiency and setting targets for quality of service,” the authority said.
“As part of its review, the regulator will also carefully consider the rules on resilience after the closure of Heathrow airport on 21 March 2025.”
The CAA added: “Separate to its reviews, the Civil Aviation Authority remains in close contact with Heathrow relating to Friday’s incident and the closure of the airport.
“The regulator will support the National System Energy Operator’s review and will take into account its outcomes, alongside the results of Heathrow’s own investigation, in considering whether it should take further steps under Heathrow’s licence.”
The authority insisted that the reviews “will ensure that the framework for the economic regulation of Heathrow is consistent with the efficient and sustainable growth of the airport”.
It noted: “This will allow work on capacity expansion to proceed on a more flexible basis and timetable, in support of the government’s work on capacity expansion.
“The UK Civil Aviation Authority expects constructive engagement between Heathrow and airlines to continue alongside broader discussions on capacity expansion.”
However, a spokesperson for the Heathrow Reimagined campaign said: “Whilst the CAA’s announcement of a regulatory review for Heathrow expansion is a step forward, it doesn’t go far enough.
“Heathrow is the most expensive airport in the world and continues to fail passengers and airlines.
“We are concerned that the priority of the CAA has been to launch the ‘business as usual’ review of passenger charges for the next five year period.
“The current flawed regime will lead to higher passenger charges which is why we urge the CAA to go even further and commit to an urgent and fundamental review of regulation at Heathrow.”