Heathrow passenger numbers were down 82 per cent in September with just 1.3million using the airport

Passenger numbers at Heathrow were down 82 per cent last month, compared to the previous September, as the airport’s chief executive issued fresh calls for a new ‘test and release’ programme.

John Holland-Kaye has urged ministers to roll out a system allowing travellers to leave quarantine after just five days, rather than the current two-week period, insisting such a move would kick-start the economy and help save millions of jobs.

It comes as figures show just 1.2 million people travelled through the west London airport last month, compared with 6.8 million in September 2019. 

The data also revealed that more than half of those passengers were flying to or from the European Union. 

Heathrow said long-haul business travel continues to be restricted by international border closures and ‘a lack of testing’ for Covid-19.

And the lack of long-haul flights led to cargo volumes, normally carried in the hold of passenger planes, falling by 28.2 per cent compared to September last year.

Last week, the Government unveiled a taskforce to develop a coronavirus testing system as a potential way of easing quarantine restrictions for arriving passengers, but Mr Holland-Kaye today called for measures to be taken further.

He said: ‘The Government’s Global Travel Taskforce is a great step forward, but needs to act quickly to save the millions of UK jobs that rely on aviation.

‘Implementing ‘test and release’ after five days of quarantine would kick-start the economy.

‘But the Government could show real leadership by working with the US to develop a common international standard for pre-departure testing that would mean that only Covid-free passengers are allowed to travel from high-risk countries.’

Last week, it was revealed that Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands airports plan to axe 900 jobs as the fall out from coronavirus continues to batter the travel industry.

Manchester Airports Group (MAG) – which owns the hubs – said it is having to take action because there simply isn’t the demand for travel.

It added the lack of progress on testing had discouraged people from travelling because the prospect of a two-week quarantine was not practical.

Earlier this summer, Gatwick bosses admitted they fear demand for flying won’t return to pre-pandemic levels until 2025.

Passenger numbers at the West Sussex airport fell by two-thirds in the first half of the year compared with 2019, plummeting from 22.2 million to 7.5 million, it was announced at the end of August.

The industry was crippled earlier this year as non-essential travel was banned during the peak of the Covid crisis.  

Just 200,000 people flew into UK airports each month during April, May and June as thousands had to cancel holidays and remain at home in lockdown.

The opening of ‘air bridges’ to dozens of countries around the world in recent weeks then saw air traffic increase six-fold in July, though the 1.3 million arrivals represents just a tenth of the number who flew into Britain 12 months previously.

A glimmer of hope was provided for Gatwick, however, which also announced a 61.3 per cent drop in revenue and a £321m loss, as Wizz Air announced it is to open a new base at the airport. 

Gatwick released its half-year results just days after announcing that 600 jobs – around a quarter of its workforce – would be cut across areas including corporate staff, security and those working on airfields and terminals.

This is on top of 785 who have already left, mostly through voluntary redundancies, but neither figure includes people working in shops and restaurants on site, who are employed directly by each of those companies.  

The airport said in a statement that the recovery to pre-pandemic traffic levels ‘is forecast to be four to five years’.