British Airways cancellations and delays: What’s causing so many problems?

British airline passengers often fail to appreciate just how lucky they are. The UK is the main base of operations for easyJet and Ryanair: Europe’s biggest budget airlines, offering wider horizons at lower fares than any other country in Europe. Jet2 and Virgin Atlantic have well-earned reputations for excellent service. And that leaves British Airways with a formidable challenge.

No other national carrier endures such intense competition on its home turf. Air France and Lufthansa face challenges from low-cost airlines, but not to the same intensity; and they can fight back with their own budget brands, Transavia and Eurowings respectively. Long haul, all European airlines fight to retain passengers against rivals from the west and, more particularly, Gulf and Asian carriers to the east. But only BA has a home-grown competitor of the scale and quality of Virgin Atlantic on all the most lucrative routes from London Heathrow.

British Airways, though, has a superpower: the majority of slots at the world’s most desirable international airport. BA’s portfolio of more than 50 per cent of the precious permissions to take off and land comprises the most valuable intangible property in aviation.

Passengers are prepared to pay a big premium to fly to or from the UK’s main hub. Airlines say many overseas travellers believe Heathrow is the only London airport – even though the capital is served by more airports than any other city.

Add BA’s Avios frequent flyer scheme – “as addictive as crack cocaine” according to one rival – and there is enough demand for British Airways to chalk up £1.43bn in profit in last year. Visualise that as the airline profiting at a rate of £50 per second.

Sometimes, though, that slot portfolio becomes a liability. When things go wrong at Heathrow, the British Airways operation can unravel with terrifying speed.

So it proved this weekend. On Friday 6 September storms pummelled south east England for much of the day.

If there is disruption at LHR, European airlines can cope easily: for Austrian Airlines, KLM and Swiss, Heathrow operations represent only a small part of their total operation.

But when bad weather strikes BA’s main base, 100 per cent of its flights are potentially affected. The carrier is far more susceptible to disruption at Heathrow than anyone else…