13 questions about Heathrow cancelled flights answered by Simon Calder

Holidaymakers were left worried on Tuesday after Heathrow airport asked airlines to stop selling flights for this summer.

In an unprecedented move, the aviation hub announced a daily cap on passenger numbers until 11 September, saying that the airport could handle no more than 100,000 travellers each day.

The Independent’s travel correspondent Simon Calder answered reader questions on what this means for your holiday and whether your flight will be affected during an ‘Ask Me Anything’.

Here are 13 questions answered by Simon.

Will the Heathrow cap and disruption at Gatwick mean my flight is cancelled?

Q: I’m due to fly from Heathrow to San Francisco on BA’s morning flight on Sunday 31 July (on a trip that has been postponed since 2020). Do you think it is likely to be cancelled due to the passenger number cap? (Flight looks pretty full, as does their only other SFO flight in the afternoon).

A: I understand your concern about the possibility of cancelling flights, because the Heathrow cap came completely out of the blue this morning. But at every possible opportunity, airlines have kept long-haul flights going – they are far more profitable, and also have fewer alternative means of transport. So I confidently predict your trip will go ahead as normal.

Q: I have an easyJet flight booked from Madrid to Gatwick on 12 August. I am travelling to look after my sister for a week after she undergoes an operation. I am very worried that easyJet will cancel my flight and I won’t be able to go over. Do you think my flight will be cancelled, seeing as Madrid is not a very hot tourist destination?

A: First, I wish your sister well for the operation. Next, easyJet has already made thousands of flight cancellations to and from Gatwick, and the number of departures at short notice is now low. So the overwhelming odds are that your flight will go ahead as normal. But if I am wrong, British Airways and its partner, Iberia, have lots of flights between them throughout the day between Madrid and London Heathrow. Your airline must get you to your destination on the same day if your original flight is cancelled, and if easyJet cannot find a seat for you then it must pay for a trip on a rival airline.

Q: I have a flight booked Gatwick to Marrakech on 30 July with BA. I can’t find it on the flight timetable anymore. Could it be that it’s just fully booked and no longer availability or is it likely to be cancelled? All looks OK on the ‘My Bookings’ section of the…