After Heathrow bosses instructed airlines to cancel at most 1,000 more flights, summer holidays are now being rationed.
Britain’s busiest airport is capping the number able to fly each day for the next two months — with airlines told to stop selling tickets.
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This latest problem is a result of continuing travel misery. The country is currently facing its biggest rail strike since 25 years. Ryanair and easyJet staff are also planning walkouts.
Heathrow chief executive John Holland-Kaye, who earned £1.5million last year, yesterday said there would be a limit of 100,000 people a day until September 11.
There were 104,000 people who would fly out of Heathrow each day, so hundreds more flights will be canceled.
Affected passengers will not get any compensation as the cause of cancellation is legally beyond their airline’s control.
Holland-Kaye said Heathrow must act to address huge queues and delays, as well as lost bags, cancellations, and last-minute cancellations.
He said: “Some airlines have taken significant action but others have not and we believe that further action is needed.
“We have therefore made the difficult decision to introduce a capacity cap with effect from July 12 to September 11.
“Our assessment is that the maximum number of daily departing passengers that airlines, airline ground handlers and the airport can collectively serve over the summer is no more than 100,000.”
About 1,500 of the 4,000 daily seats that are above the new limit have been sold.
Those with tickets will have to be rebooked on other flights — possibly with different airlines and on different dates.
Holland-Kaye stated: “We are asking airline partners to stop selling summer tickets to limit the impact on passengers.”
Staff shortages have already caused chaos for travellers for weeks.
British Airways cancelled 10,300 flights last week up to October.
It previously canned 16,000 more in March.
EasyJet cut over 10,000 trips while Ryanair dropped seven percent of its summer schedule, and WizzAir five percent.
Heathrow instructed airlines Monday to cancel 61 flights due to a surge of passengers at two terminals.
Furious flyer Neil Evans tweeted yesterday: “What a f*****g s*** show.”
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