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Heathrow’s chief executive has defended the high price tag of its proposed expansion, saying any other airport seeking to build a new runway in London would face the same costs.
Carriers including IAG, owner of British Airways, and Virgin Atlantic have voiced concern about plans for a third runway, warning that they could lead to substantial increases in landing charges at Europe’s busiest airport.
One customer, speaking on condition of anonymity, suggested the expansion could cost as much as £50bn to £60bn — far more than new runways at other large airports.
But Heathrow boss Thomas Woldbye told the Financial Times on Wednesday that the high cost of the project — which has been endorsed by the UK government — was an inevitable feature of the airport’s location, about 16 miles from central London and surrounded by housing.
“If any other airport were to build the kind of airport that Heathrow is, in the middle of London, they would cost the same,” Woldbye said.
“Building a new runway in the centre of London isn’t going to be cheap. That’s just the nature of it.”
He was speaking as the airport published its first-half financial results and ahead of the publication on July 31 of its detailed proposals to build a third runway.
Woldbye said he did not “necessarily recognise” the £50bn to £60bn estimate, adding that there would be a cost figure in the airport’s plans when they were published next week.
Critics, including many customers, have questioned several possible features of the expansion, including building the runway partly on top of London’s M25 orbital motorway.
The project would face high costs to purchase the required land and clear it of existing buildings, Woldbye said. One previous new runway plan involved the demolition of 750 houses, a primary school and an energy plant.
“These are all additional costs when you compare to many other runways being built elsewhere,” Woldbye said.
He declined to comment on whether the final plan would entail building a runway across the M25, as envisaged in an earlier proposal. Heathrow has been considering suggesting a shorter third runway that would avoid the need to cross the motorway.
The airport would discuss its plans with its airline customers, Woldbye added.
“We want to deliver the most efficient airport expansion that we can, both in terms of deliverability and cost.”
Heathrow handled a record 39.9mn passengers in the first half of 2025, according to its results. The figure was 0.3 per cent up on the figure for the first half of 2024.
Woldbye said there was limited scope for further growth until a third runway was built, as the airport was running at full capacity.
