BA to introduce shorter check-in time

British Airways will introduce a new 45 minute minimum check-in time for flights out of Heathrow and Gatwick later this month, meaning that passengers will have to allow for more time at the airport.

From October 28, the same date that the airline's winter schedule begins, check-in desks and kiosks at both the London airports will close 45 minutes before the flight is scheduled to depart.

The aim of the change is "to ease your journey through the airport and provide a consistent check-in time", the airline said in a statement.

British Airways stressed that check-in times at other airports remain unchanged. Passengers flying with BA can find out their check-in times via the 'At the airport' section of 'Manage My Booking' on www.ba.com.

Times for online check-in at Heathrow and Gatwick are also not affected by this change. It will continue to close 60 minutes before the scheduled departure time.

BA has announced that its passenger traffic in September dropped by 0.7 per cent compared to September 2006. Load factors (the proportion of seats filled) were down by 0.8 per cent.

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