Flight demand ebbs after US crash

HIGH-FLYING executives' confidence in transatlantic travel has been shaken since Monday's airline crash in New York. Already wary after the events of 11 September, business travellers had nonetheless been getting airborne again. The mood was of cautious optimism.

Monday's events, however, have set that back. Airlines face an increasingly difficult task to revive confidence among their premium travellers. Revising contracts with travel managers and offering special deals are not enough as safety takes over as the main concern.

The New York route has been among the worst-hit transatlantic services over the past two months as has the key US gateway of Chicago, strategically located in the Mid-West for business and flight connections.

North Atlantic passengers passing through Heathrow, Gatwick and airport operator BAA's other British gateway, Glasgow, fell in October by 551,000. This was worse than the drop for the whole of September.

London to New York is the busiest transatlantic and long-haul route in the world, with around 25 non-stop flights operating daily. The key customers on the route are banks, insurance firms and investment brokers, who are among those hardest hit by the attacks on the US.

'New Yorkers are resilient,' said Cristyne Nicholas, president and chief executive of NYC & Company, the convention and visitors bureau. 'This recent tragedy looks like an accident. Too many jobs are at stake and I'm sure we'll bounce back.'

Reduced demand on the New York route has already forced British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, American Airlines and United Airlines to cut capacity from Heathrow to Newark and JFK.

Though not being forced to travel, British executives feel they have no choice but to cross the Atlantic to get on with business and to overcome any nervousness they may have about flying. 'What happened this week has certainly jolted confidence among business travellers, particularly across the Atlantic,' said Lorraine Holdcroft, executive director of the Institute of Travel Management.

'There is that fear and hesitancy which is not helped by security measures at US airports which are still not up to the levels that we would expect.' But Holdcroft, whose organisation represents British corporate travel managers and travel industry suppliers, said its members feel that the reluctance of US executives to fly has increased pressure on their British colleagues to travel.

Utilities and entertainment group Vivendi Universal, which has business interests in New York and Los Angeles, backs up the institute's findings. 'After 11 September, our business travel has increased in some areas as employees from our American offices would not come to the UK, so more people would fly from here to the US,' said Tom Stone, Vivendi Universal's director of global travel management.

He said that there is no forced policy to travel. Like many companies, Vivendi Universal has tightened its policy to ensure that only essential trips are made. But it has also adopted a relaxed approach, where individuals do not have to travel with a preferred airline that Vivendi has struck a deal with.

Those who are entitled to business or first-class travel are still being allowed to fly in their permitted cabins. 'But if they do not feel comfortable flying with a certain airline, they can make a choice and we will understand that. I think we all pray that Monday's incident does not make what is already a bad situation worse,' Stone said.