Passenger traffic up, says BAA

THE number of passengers travelling through the UK’s seven major airports in May jumped by 2% on the same month last year, according to airports operator BAA.

Figures released today show European scheduled traffic rose by 7.2% with domestic routes up 3.6%.

The Middle East picked up following the end of the Iraq war but the SARS crisis is still heavily damaging the Far East market with a 35% drop from last year. North Atlantic routes also dropped, by 7%.

Heathrow saw a 4.2% drop in passengers, but Gatwick increased by 4.3% and Stansted by almost 17%, largely due to their strong European and domestic routes.