British Airways boss slams Heathrow CEO
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Willie Walsh, the CEO of International Airlines Group, has claimed that Heathrow is ripping off passengers and hiring too many overpaid staff.
His comments were bolstered by claims he made that the airport was planning on raising its prices by GBP600mn over the next five years while also cutting spending.
Walsh has called for Heathrow CEO Colin Matthews to step down, denouncing his attempts at linking higher airport charges to the UK’s need for overseas investment by calling them “pathetic”.
UK newspaper The Guardian reported that Walsh also said that Heathrow was “incapable of running their business efficiently within a routline cost-control environment” and fundamentally “what we see is an airport that has too many people; those people are paid too much.”
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is due to meet on 3 October to discuss the fees airports can charge passengers in 2014. The body has proposed raising charges to a below inflation amount over the next five years however airlines believe the cost should be scaled back.
“If the CAA does not take a stronger line on this it will continue to be inefficient and that will be at the expense of the passengers,” Walsh added.
“Passengers are paying more than they should and the benefits of that are going to higher-than-average rewards for the shareholders.
“If Colin Matthews is incapable of running the airport and making the investment that’s necessary, and requires an excessive return to justify that investment, then he should be replaced.
“If he was the CEO at a listed entity and came out with the statements he’s come out with, I suspect shareholders would take a completely different view because of the impact on the share price.”
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