Gatwick and Stansted passenger numbers slump

BAA saw a 10% drop in passenger numbers in the first three months of 2009.

The figures show a 14.6% slump in the number of passengers travelling through Gatwick and Stansted airports compared to the same period last year.

Heathrow airport suffered to a lesser extent, losing a passenger percentage of only 6.4%.

Despite a revenue increase of 15.5%, the company's pre-tax losses increased almost six-fold year-on-year from £55.6 million to £316.2 million.

BAA said that the depreciation of Terminal 5, the recession and heavy snow in February were the principal reasons for airports' poor performance in the first three months of 2009.

Chief executive Colin Matthews said the poor results were expected "in the most difficult economic circumstances".

"The rest of the year will be difficult and will present more challenges but our focus remains on raising service standards and maximising efficiency," he added.

BAA said it would be announcing the fate of Gatwick airport, which the group were forced to sell due to competition rules, in the next few weeks.

Reports indicated the sale would fetch around £1.4 billion - far from the £2 billion initially expected by owner, Ferrovial.