Gatwick Airport's half-year pre-tax profits have fallen by almost a fifth, decreasing by 18% to £136.5 million for the six months to 30 June. This decline from £166.2 million a year earlier is linked to a drop in passenger numbers, which the airport attributes to the conflict in Iran affecting international travel.
Passenger numbers passing through the airport's two terminals fell by 4.7% to 19.1 million over the period. Long-haul travel experienced the sharpest decline, dropping 9.2% due to the Middle East conflict, while short-haul passenger numbers fell by 3.9%.
The airport operator stated that demand was affected by concerns over jet fuel supplies during the conflict, although no shortages have occurred. Passengers are also making bookings closer to departure dates amid ongoing conflict-related uncertainty, leading some low-cost airlines to scale back flight programmes.
These financial updates follow a Court of Appeal ruling at the beginning of August that cleared the way for the development of Gatwick’s second runway. The £2.2 billion expansion, approved by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander last September, will involve moving the emergency runway 12 metres north to accommodate approximately 100,000 more flights annually.