(Bloomberg) — Emirates rejected demands by London Heathrow airport to cut capacity and said it will operate flights as planned, days after the hub said it would ask airlines to stop selling tickets for the busy summer season and limit daily passenger numbers.
The carrier, which operates six daily Airbus SE A380 superjumbo jets to Heathrow from its base in Dubai, said the airport operator gave it just 36 hours notice to limit passenger capacity and it was impossible to rebook travelers onto other flights as its services were full.
Heathrow imposed an unprecedented two-month cap on passenger traffic to contain flight chaos, asking carriers to limit departing people to 100,000 through Sept.
11. The hub said the curbs were needed because new recruits were not “up to full speed,” while some key functions, like ground handlers for baggage, remain significantly under-resourced.
The move could equate to $550 million in lost revenue, according to aviation data firm OAG.
Heathrow pushed back against Emirates’ rejection of the limits Thursday, saying the hub’s cap was “significantly higher” than the limits imposed by Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport.
‘Difficult Decision’
“We had no choice but to take the difficult decision to impose a capacity cap designed to give passengers a better, more reliable journey and to keep everyone working at the airport safe,” a Heathrow spokesman said.
“It would be disappointing if instead of working together, any airline would want to put profit ahead a safe and reliable passenger journey.”
The stance by Emirates sets up a clash between Heathrow and one of its most important and loyal customers.
The A380s landing daily in London constitute more than 3,000 passengers at full capacity. Emirates dismissed the argument, saying its ground handling and catering operations are run by one of its group companies and therefore not affected by the shortages.
Heathrow “chose not to act, not to plan, not to invest,” Emirates said in the statement.
“Now faced with an “airmageddon” situation due to their incompetence and non-action, they are pushing the entire burden — of costs and the scramble to sort the mess — to airlines and travelers.”
British Airways, which had already announced a swathe of cancellations earlier this month, said that the limits imposed by Heathrow were “incredibly disappointing”.
The carrier is giving passengers who are due to travel through July 25 an option to move their travel dates or take a voucher.
(Updates with Heathrow comment in fifth paragraph.)
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