FTSE 100 closes higher after upbeat UK earnings October 20, 2020 The FTSE 100 recovered from an early fall to close in the green after a day of positive quarterly earnings, although residual fears over coronavirus and new restrictions remain. London’s blue-chip index fell 0.3 per cent but crept back through the day to close up by the same margin at 5,899 points. The FTSE 250 [...]
Start of airport testing ‘shot in the arm’ for travel industry October 20, 2020 The launch of the UK’s first pre-departure testing facility at Heathrow Airport has been lauded today amid hopes that it can boost the ailing travel industry. Swissport and Collinson teamed up to launch the facility this morning, with tests costing passengers £80. The programme aims to give travellers their results in less than an hour. [...]
British Airways boss piles pressure on the government to scrap quarantine October 19, 2020 The new British Airways boss has called on the government to introduce pre-departure testing warning the UK risks being left behind in the economic recovery. Sean Doyle, who became chief executive of the airline last week, said the UK needed to get the economy going again but “this just isn’t possible when you’re asking people [...]
BA and Virgin bag £70m of taxpayer money to fly PPE back from China October 16, 2020 British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have been paid more than £70m of taxpayer money to ferry personal protective equipment (PPE) to the UK from China, as the government scrambles to stock up supplies in time for winter. BA, which is the second-largest airline in the UK, was handed £46m between May and July through a [...]
FTSE 100 and US stocks climb as investor fears ease October 16, 2020 The FTSE 100 rebounded as investors returned to risk assets, having dumped them yesterday amid worries over new coronavirus restrictions, while US stocks rose on vaccine hopes and upbeat retail sales data. London’s main stock index climbed 1.7 per cent in afternoon trading to stand at 5,929 points. That followed a 1.7 per cent tumble [...]
ICO fines British Airways £20m for data breach October 16, 2020 The ICO has fined British Airways £20m for a data breach affecting more than 400,000 customers. The watchdog found that the airline was processing personal data “without adequate security measures in place” breaking data protection law. Subsequently BA suffered a severe cyber attack in 2018, which it did not detect for more than two months. [...]
Mayfair hedge fund takes £140m stake in British Airways owner October 15, 2020 One of the UK’s largest hedge funds has taken out a large position in embattled British Airways owner IAG amid the worst crisis in aviation history. £35bn Marshall Wace today disclosed a three per cent stake in the airlines group, making it one of IAG’s largest stockholders. The Mayfair-based fund has previously taken out short [...]
Global airlines get nearly £100bn in state aid and bailout funding October 13, 2020 Easyjet last week became the latest airline to indicate that it may need more money from the state to deal with the financial hammering it has taken at the hands of coronavirus. Around the world, governments have already splashed out a whopping £98.7bn on airlines, a figure that could jump by another $25bn (£19.3bn) if [...]
Alex Cruz: Five days to forget for the outbound British Airways boss October 12, 2020 The travel world awoke to a shock this morning as it was announced that British Airways boss Alex Cruz would leave the firm with immediate effect. He departs with aviation mired in the deepest crisis in its history, with passenger numbers still at historic lows due to the coronavirus pandemic. The decision is the first [...]
Heathrow Airport passenger numbers plummet over 80 per cent in September October 12, 2020 Just 1.3m passengers travelled through Heathrow Airport in September, down 82 per cent on the same month last year, as the coronavirus pandemic continued to hammer aviation. With blanket quarantine restrictions limiting long-haul travel, over half the passengers came from destinations in the EU, the figures showed. However, since the government laid out its travel [...]