Turbulence for Luton as court decides if expansion project can leave the ground Legal The Court of Appeal will today hear a challenge to the government-approved expansion of Luton Airport from an environmental group over whether the development should have been green-lit last year. The dispute was escalated to the appeals court by the campaign group, Luton And District Association for the Control of Aircraft Noise (LADACAN), who brought [...]
Ryanair warns ‘weak’ airlines will go bust this year as fuel costs soar Aviation Ryanair’s finance boss has said he “wouldn’t be surprised” if some of the airline’s “weaker” rivals went bust later this year, as the Iran war spikes fuel costs. The Dublin-based budget carrier has insisted it is “confident” despite warnings of a jet fuel crisis, but US carrier Spirit Airlines shut down last month, and Ryanair [...]
Heathrow, Gatwick revolt over Labour flight cancellation plans Transport & Infrastructure Heathrow and Gatwick have urged the government to climb down from plans to allow airlines to scrap flights without notice – a move which could endanger the summer holidays of millions of Brits. The leading airports reportedly wrote to the government to oppose mooted plans to unwind “use it or lose it” rules to allow [...]
Jet fuel crisis worse than Covid for airlines, says AirAsia chief May 7, 2026 The global jet fuel shortage caused by the Iran war has caused a bigger crisis for airlines than the Covid-19 pandemic, the chief of AirAsia has warned. Tony Fernandes, chief executive of AirAsia, said: “I thought I’d seen it all with Covid […] but having seen jet fuel go up almost three times — this is much [...]
Jet fuel shortage looms as government scrambles to secure supplies April 29, 2026 The government is scrambling to secure UK airlines’ emergency access to jet fuel as global shipments fall to their lowest level on record. Global shipments of jet fuel have fallen to their lowest level on record, as the blockage to the Strait of Hormuz threatens to suffocate supply to the world’s airlines. Under 2.3m tonnes [...]
Brits booking holidays last minute over Iran war fears, says Jet2 April 29, 2026 Budget airline Jet2 said Brits are leaving holiday bookings until the very last minute as the Iran war threatens to wreak havoc on summer tourism plans. The UK’s third-largest package holiday provider said on Wednesday: “Since commencement of the conflict in the Middle East, the booking profile has become increasingly close to departure.” But the [...]
Airport warning over ‘full’ Heathrow as transfer traffic takes off on Iran war April 29, 2026 London’s main gateway to the world and the UK’s busiest airport issued a forthright warning over its capacity on Wednesday, as war in the Middle East meant demand for flight transfers took off. “Heathrow is full”, said its chief financial officer, Sally Ding. She spoke out alongside the release of first-quarter numbers which revealed 18.9m [...]
British Airways forced to downgrade loyalty scheme members after ‘error’ April 25, 2026 British Airways has been forced to downgrade thousand of members of its loyalty scheme, after it parent’s company rewards team incorrectly told passengers they could keep their gold or silver tier status. The error, which IAG Loyalty pinned on a “technical issues”, comes as shake-up of the scheme is becoming disruptive for the thousands of [...]
WH Smith profit grounded as flight cancellations take hold April 23, 2026 WH Smith shares tumbled after the retailer adopted a more “cautious outlook” as the Iran war sparks a slowdown in international tourism. The retailer’s share price fell by more than 15 per cent on Thursday’s open, to 532p, leaving the stock down more than 16 per cent in the year so far. The stationer suffered [...]
Ask the expert: Can I afford a gap year in my 40s? March 11, 2026 Do you have a personal finance question that you’re struggling to find an answer to? Email askthexpert@cityam.com Questions will be published anonymously. Fidelity personal finance specialist Marianna Hunt is back to advise a reader who wishes to take a year off for travel but worries about disrupting long term savings plans. Q: I’m in my [...]