British Airways warns of extended Gatwick terminal closure

The London Gatwick airport management warned its staff during an internal townhall meeting that its South Terminal is likely to remain closed through at least the Summer 2021 season, the Daily Telegraph has reported. Chief Executive Stewart Wingate underlined that the decision was prompted by continuously declining schedules operated by key airlines, including British Airways (BA, London Heathrow), and the unclear path to recovery which has been hampered by renewed travel restrictions. While the terminal was not exclusively used by British Airways, it was its main hub of short-haul operations at Gatwick. The airline also uses the North Terminal at Gatwick, although exclusively for long-haul services. As such, the South Terminal’s extended closure has fed ongoing speculation about the future of BA’s short-haul services from Gatwick against a potential consolidation at London Heathrow airport. According to the ch-aviation schedules module, BA’s current network from Gatwick entails long-haul leisure routes to the Carribean, to Antigua, Bermuda, Bridgetown, Kingston Norman Manley, and St. Lucia Hewanorra specifically. According to current schedule data, BA is tentatively planning to restore short-haul European and African routes from Gatwick starting in mid-November 2020.