Southampton Airport reacts to British Airways axing flights

The airport is trying to persuade rival airlines to launch new services, including replacements for those axed by the national carrier.

BA is refusing to say why it has cancelled the flights in a move that has left passengers scrambling to find alternatives.

The decision comes only four months after BA revealed two new routes from the city – Bergerac and Majorca.

BA has axed all its 2025 summer flights from Southampton, a year after the airport extended its runway (Image: Supplied)

Currently the carrier, under its subsidiary, BA City Flyer, flies from Southampton to Bergerac, Faro, Malaga and Majorca in the summer at weekends, and to Chambery and Bergerac in the winter.

But the company is facing competition from other airlines on some of the routes.

READ MORE: Work starts on 164m extension to Southampton Airport in £17m bid to secure site's future 

BA is the seventh-largest operator from Southampton Airport during September 2024 with a three per cent share of the market.

EasyJet accounts for a 21.5 per cent share, followed by Blue Islands on 20.3 per cent and BA’s sister carrier Aer Lingus on 18.1 per cent.

BA is the sole provider of nonstop service to Bergerac and Malaga, while it competes with easyJet on routes to Faro and Palma.

Ryanair serves all four destinations from Bournemouth Airport, while TUI Airways operates from Bournemouth to Palma.

Jet2.com is also opening a base at Bournemouth next summer and plans to serve Faro and Palma.

Southampton Airport extended its runway last year to enable it to cater for larger jets (Image: David Hogg)

In a brief statement, Southampton Airport said: "Clearly it’s disappointing when any route is removed.

"However, we are in constant dialogue with airlines regarding the introduction of new services and that includes backfilling the routes withdrawn by British Airways."

READ MORE: First flight takes off from Southampton Airport following completion of £17m extension to runway

BA added: "We are suspending our summer 2025 operations from Southampton Airport and contacting any affected customers, with options including rebooking on alternative flights with us or another airline or a full refund."

Asked why it had decided to axe the flights, the company did not respond.

It comes little more than a year after the airport extended its sole runway by 164m, saying it was one of the shortest in the UK and could not be used by larger planes.

Paul Holmes was MP for neighbouring Eastleigh at the time. He was a vocal supporter of the £17m scheme, saying it would "unlock potential" and encourage more airlines to use the airport.

BA's decision involves only four flights a week, with passengers free to choose from hundreds of flights a day from London airports.