How a third runway could leverage the British Airways network

LONDON  - The UK government endorsed expansion plans for London Heathrow. A third runway would not only expand overall capacities of Europe's largest aviation hub, but also most likely "reshape" British Airways' operating model. The carrier could switch from a "constant operation" to inbound and outbound traffic waves.

London Heathrow outgrows pre-Covid traffic. The British Airways hub handled 83.9 million passengers through 2024, three percent more than in 2019 - and the numbers keep rising.

This puts plans for a third runway back on the agenda. The airport just received important backing for the project when Chancellor Rachel Reeves signaled government support. A concept for a third runway in the north-west of the airport site has been floating around since 2019.

Currently, London's largest airport is shut down at 480,000 aircraft movements per year. A third runway along with supporting land- and airside infrastructrue could increase Heathrow's system capacity to 720,000 aircraft movements and 140 million annual passengers.

British Airways mulls switch to waves

A third runway would also have another positive side effect for British Airways - the main customer could switch from a rolling system to a more efficient hub-and-spoke operating model at Heathrow.

"A third runway could ultimately reshape how we design our network,” British Airways chief strategist Neil Chernoff told delegates at a Nassau conference, "Aviation Week" reports.

While other hub airlines structure traffic in arrival and departure waves, British Airways runs "a constant operation throughout the day, with aircraft arriving and departing nonstop," Chernoff said. A switch to hub-and-spoke woud allow British Airways "to improve connections and expand our network".