British Airways extends short-haul sales suspension to mid-August

Flight options for summer travellers have shrunk further with British Airways extending its “stop-sale” policy for shorter flights from Heathrow airport.

Yesterday it emerged that the airline had stopped selling seats from its main base on short-haul (domestic and European) departures up to and including 8 August.

BA is now telling travel trade partners: “To help maximise rebooking options for existing customers, we’ve decided to take further responsible action and limit the available fares on some Heathrow services.

“Short-haul flights departing from Heathrow will now be closed for sale until 15 August 2022 in all channels.

“These flights will not be available to book via ba.com or via our partners.”

The first bookable departures from Heathrow, to destinations such as Athens, Gibraltar and Naples, are on 16 August.

The removal of so much inventory ‒ particularly on late-booking routes such as London Heathrow to Edinburgh ‒ has led to a surge in fares on BA flights from other airports.

On Sunday 7 August, the only available BA departure from the English capital to the Scottish capital is an evening flight from London City, at a fare of £426 for a 75-minute flight.

Other airlines, in particular easyJet, are benefiting from the removal of capacity from an already oversubscribed market. They stand to pick up additional late bookings at high fares.

Flybe is selling its Heathrow-Belfast City flights on 3 August for £300 one-way. This fare includes one small cabin bag weighing 7kg – compared with BA’s hand-luggage allowance of 46kg.

In addition, the forthcoming rail strikes have caused a surge in demand.

From London Gatwick to Edinburgh on 13 August, for example, the cheapest flight on easyJet is selling for £195.

Train drivers working for LNER – the main operator between London and Edinburgh – are striking on that date, along with Aslef members at eight other rail firms.