BA flights switch to Heathrow T5

YEARS of chaos at Heathrow following the construction of a fifth terminal will be averted, said airports operator BAA on Thursday after signing a deal with British Airways.

BAA said the agreement will see the flag carrier move all operations into Terminal 5 in one go when it is ready in the spring of 2008, rather than over a transitional period which was set to extend to 2012.

BAA will now have to accelerate the full fitting out of T5 and spend an extra £100m on the project, taking the total cost to £4bn.

It says it will fund the extra cost itself from the operational efficiencies of BA moving out of all the other terminals.

The news came as BAA reported £312m of pre-tax profits in the six months to 30 September. Though down 4%, that represents a strong comeback after the effects of the Iraq war and slowdown related to the killer Sars virus in the first quarter.

Passenger traffic was up 2.5% in the period and average passenger spend at BAA's seven UK airports rose by nearly 2% to £3.98. The interim dividend is lifted 5% to 6.6p.