BRITISH Airways is setting out new rules for passengers flying through Heathrow Airport.

The airline has increased the minimum connection time for connecting flights operating through Heathrow Terminal 5.

The connection time, which previously stood at 60 minutes, has increased to 75 minutes.

On the British Airways website, passengers can only book connecting services if flights are scheduled to arrive at least 75 minutes before the onward departure time.

A spokesperson for British Airways said: “Following customer feedback, we’re increasing the minimum connection time for some of our flights through Heathrow T5.

“This will give customers more time to make their next flight and reduce the risk of missing their onward service, which we know is incredibly frustrating.”

The rule change was brought into effect on January 9, 2024, in a bid to make connections at Terminal 5 less stressful, with UK passengers flying from airports like Manchester and Edinburgh most likely to be impacted.

Any passengers travelling from those airports may need to take an earlier flight before arriving at Heathrow.

While minimum connection times are set by the International Air Transport Association, individual airlines can set their own times.

Holidaymakers who need to switch between Terminals 3 and 5 will still need to have a minimum connection time of 90 minutes.

This is because passengers will need to take a 10-minute bus between the terminals.

Other top airports across Europe have shorter minimum connection times.

For example, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport has a minimum connection time of 40 minutes for flights to Schengen countries and 50 minutes for non-Schengen countries.

Meanwhile, British Airways flights are set to return to London Stansted for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic.

The flag carrier has confirmed that three new routes will depart from the London airport, with prices starting at £36 for a one-way ticket.

From London Stansted, British Airways will fly to Florence, Ibiza, and Nice.

The new flights will be operated by BA Cityflyer – a subsidiary of British Airways.

At present, BA Cityflyer already flies from London City Airport to nearly 30 short-haul destinations.

Read the full originally published story at – thesun.co.uk