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| BA says terror alert cost it £40m | BA says terror alert cost it £40m |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Flight cancellations caused by August's terror alert cost British Airways (BA) £40m ($75.9m), the airline has said. | Flight cancellations caused by August's terror alert cost British Airways (BA) £40m ($75.9m), the airline has said. |
| BA said it had to cancel 1,280 flights between 10 and 17 August. The £40m bill also includes higher costs of hotels, catering and recovering baggage. | BA said it had to cancel 1,280 flights between 10 and 17 August. The £40m bill also includes higher costs of hotels, catering and recovering baggage. |
| Security measures, introduced after police disrupted an alleged plot to blow up planes, led to cancellations and lengthy delays for air travellers. | Security measures, introduced after police disrupted an alleged plot to blow up planes, led to cancellations and lengthy delays for air travellers. |
| BA said since the disruption there had been "some impact" on forward bookings. | BA said since the disruption there had been "some impact" on forward bookings. |
| However, overall passenger numbers were still up in August compared with last year, rising 1.5% to 3.15 million. | However, overall passenger numbers were still up in August compared with last year, rising 1.5% to 3.15 million. |
| The £40m cost is equivalent to about a fifth of BA's pre-tax profits for the April to June period of £195m. | |
| Security tightened | Security tightened |
| The alert led to significantly tighter security measures at airports with travellers restricted to one clear plastic bag as carry on luggage - holding little more than their passport and tickets. | The alert led to significantly tighter security measures at airports with travellers restricted to one clear plastic bag as carry on luggage - holding little more than their passport and tickets. |
| No food or drink was allowed on board and mothers were forced to taste bottles of baby milk to show it was safe. | No food or drink was allowed on board and mothers were forced to taste bottles of baby milk to show it was safe. |
| Since the alert, rules have relaxed slightly, with passengers allowed to take one item of hand luggage on board, no bigger than a case for a laptop computer. | Since the alert, rules have relaxed slightly, with passengers allowed to take one item of hand luggage on board, no bigger than a case for a laptop computer. |
| Airlines have claimed the measures have dented sales and passenger numbers, while no-frills group Ryanair has launched legal action to sue the government for £3.3m for losses it says it incurred because of tighter aviation security. | Airlines have claimed the measures have dented sales and passenger numbers, while no-frills group Ryanair has launched legal action to sue the government for £3.3m for losses it says it incurred because of tighter aviation security. |
| Meanwhile, BA said passenger load factor - which measures how well-filled its planes are - fell to 77.8% from 77.9% in August last year. | Meanwhile, BA said passenger load factor - which measures how well-filled its planes are - fell to 77.8% from 77.9% in August last year. |
| Looking ahead, the airline added that while underlying market conditions remain good, "visibility" was limited as it emerged from the issues surrounding August's alert. | Looking ahead, the airline added that while underlying market conditions remain good, "visibility" was limited as it emerged from the issues surrounding August's alert. |