Airports review is doomed to gather dust, British Airways chief warns MPs

The government’s airports review will simply end up on a shelf, and major airlines will still be operating from a two-runway airport at Heathrow in 2050. That was the stark warning delivered by the chief executive of British Airways’ parent company IAG Willie Walsh this afternoon as he gave evidence to the Transport Select Committee. Walsh told the MPs on the committee:

‘I think the decision of the government to establish the Davies commission has been seen by some as a step in the right direction. I think personally I’m not optimistic… My own view is that the issue is too difficult for politicians and governments to deal with and I’m not optimistic that anything will change in the foreseeable future and as a result of that we’re planning our business on the basis that there will be no change to the capacity of the airports that we operate at in London and have made decisions based on that assessment so I’m an interested observer at this stage.’