...Nick van den Brul, aviation analyst for Exane BNP Paribas, said: “T5 has clearly been a big problem and it will have an impact on profits. April is usually a good month, when things start to pick up after the winter, but this has not happened.”

Analysts are concerned that BA's passenger numbers are falling just as costs rise and the economy slows. Oil prices have hit record levels and this has caused a number of airlines to go into bankruptcy.


BA put up its fuel surcharge last week to cover these increased costs, but it risks losing passengers, particularly as the economies of Britain and the United States slow.

Doug McVitie, managing director of Arran Aerospace, an aviation consult-ancy, said: “The combination of higher fares, higher costs and falling passenger numbers is very bad news and the more bad news there is, the more people will be put off the airline.”