BAA suffers double whammy

Up in the air: BAA said it would "carefully consider" the commission's decision before making any ruling

11 April 2012

Heathrow owner BAA suffered a double blow today as the Competition Commission ruled the airport operator must be broken up - just as an authoritative international survey ranked London's top airport as only 99th in the world.

The commission upheld its 2009 decision that BAA must sell Gatwick and Stansted and either Glasgow or Edinburgh airports within two years. "The decision to require BAA to divest three airports is the right one for passengers and airlines," said commission chairman Peter Freeman.

The ruling followed complaints of anti-competitive pricing from airlines and consumer groups stating BAA was abusing its monopoly position.

BAA's Spanish owners, Ferrovial, challenged the ruling in the courts until last month, when an appeals court reinstated the order. BAA sold Gatwick in October 2009.

Meanwhile, a survey by trade body Airports Council International relegated Heathrow to 99th out of 146 world airports - behind Calcutta, Moscow and Johannesburg.

Passengers slated Heathrow for its long security queues and poor "ambience", according to The Times.