(Bloomberg) -- London's Gatwick airport plans a restructuring that could lead to the elimination of another 600 jobs -- nearly a quarter of the remaining workforce -- after some of its biggest customers abandoned operations there.
Gatwick will begin a formal consultation with staff as it reshapes its business to cut operating and staff costs, according to a statement Wednesday. The U.K. site, majority owned by French builder Vinci SA, previously scrapped 785 posts through voluntary exits and the halting of short-term contracts.
While hubs worldwide are suffering as the coronavirus crisis shatters demand, Gatwick is in an especially tough spot after Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. closed a base there, British Airways put European flights on hold until November, and Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA said long-haul services might not resume until April.
Passenger traffic at Gatwick is down more than 80% this month compared with August 2019, according to the airport, which has shuttered one of its two terminals due to the absence of flights. Three-quarters of staff have been on the U.K. government's furlough program, which is due to end in October.
Wizz Air Holdings Plc said this week that it wants to establish a fleet of 20 planes at Gatwick within a year, but is being held back by a lack of access to what's normally the world's most crowded single-runway airport.
Read More: Wizz Air Plots Gatwick Incursion With Rivals in Retreat
A rule that requires carriers to relinquish takeoff and landing slots if they fail to use at least 80% of them has been suspended by the European Union after the virus grounded fleets.
In addition to its own staff, Gatwick employed 24,000 people overall across airlines, retailers, ground handling firms and other functions before the pandemic, according to a spokeswoman, with thousands of those posts now at risk.
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