Heathrow capacity problems mean 60% of arrivals circle
28.06.11
Tens of thousands of passengers are forced to circle over London and tonnes of fuel is wasted every day due to overcrowding at Heathrow, the world's busiest international airport, the Times reports. Sixty percent of arrivals into Heathrow are forced to wait in holding patterns above the capital, at a massive cost to the economy and great frustration to passengers.
Figures compiled by air traffic control company NATS reveal that jets circle for a cumulative 55 hours a day, burning 190 tonnes of fuel and discharging 600 tonnes of CO2 into the skies above London. This cost £119,000 in wasted fuel alone every day.
Heathrow currently operates at 98 percent capacity and accommodates more flights on just two runways than any other airport in the world. London Mayor Boris Johnson said last week that Heathrow had been operating close to capacity for years and ‘perpetually struggling to fit a quart into a point pot.’
Aviation experts say London is unique with its need to place the majority of commercial aircrafts into holding patterns to ease traffic. Average delays for passengers held on a typical day range from four to 10 minutes, rising to 20 minutes during the late morning peak, when between 32 and 40 jets typically circle over London.
Jon Proudlove, managing director at NATS, told the Times: ‘It is not a great environmental story and it is not something we will be shouting from the rooftops. But it is important that people know that when you are operating at 98 percent capacity and you have the two most utilised pieces of infrastructure in the world [Heathrow and Gatwick] then one of the results is that you have airborne holding.’
The NATS report estimates that Heathrow runs well 300 days of the year, while 50 days are ‘really difficult’ and 15 are a ‘complete disaster’.
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