Gatwick closes North terminal, reduces flight hours from April 1

The Sussex-based airport that services London said all operations would consolidate into its South Terminal with its runway use between 1400 GMT and 2200 GMT for scheduled flights. The measures would remain in place for a month.

The company, 50.01% owned by Vinci in a joint venture with Global Infrastructure Partners, said the “severe and unparalleled impact” of the pandemic on the global aviation sector had led it to make the decision “to protect the health and safety of passengers and staff, and to shield the business following a dramatic fall in airline traffic”.

The airline industry has been told it would not get a specific bailout from the government. Virgin Atlantic has been demanding £7.5bn from the Treasury to prop up the business as revenues evaporate. Many airlines have said their balance sheets are strong and able to withstand the current crisis.

On Thursday the industry's body said Europe’s airlines were expected to lose $76bn in passenger revenues over the course of 2020 because of travel bans imposed to fight the coronavirus outbreak.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said European airlines would take a significant part of the global hit with demand for passenger flights to fall by 38%, leading to a $252bn collapse in global revenues this year.

In the UK it estimated 113.5m fewer passengers resulting in a $21.7bn revenue loss, risking almost 402,000 jobs and around $32.7bn in contribution to the economy.