UK air passenger numbers see sharp fall

Airport operator BAA, which owns seven of the biggest air gateways in the UK, including Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted, has announced that its passenger numbers dropped substantially in September.

Some 13.3 million people flew from BAA's airports last month, a five per cent reduction compared to September 2007.

In the first nine months of the year, 113.4 million travellers used the company's airports, 1.4 per cent less than in the same period of 2007.

European charter traffic fell by 12.6 per cent at BAA's airports, while at Heathrow, the UK's busiest air gateway, European scheduled traffic decreased by 8.1 per cent in September.

It has been suggested that many travellers could be turning to ferry travel as an alternative to flying as the credit crunch bites and as the economic situation creates uncertainty in the aviation industry.

As it announced Norfolkline as the winner of its 'best ferry company' award this year, the Observer referred to figures showing that there was a three per cent rise in the number of people travelling by ferry from the UK to the continent in the year to February.

Dover - Calais

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