Emirates airline has rejected an order from Heathrow that it must cancel flights to and from the west London airport to comply with a cap on passenger numbers.

The Dubai-based carrier said that on Wednesday it had been given 36 hours to comply with Heathrow’s order, as the airport attempts to ensure it can operate without further travel delays during the summer travel peak.

Airlines and airports globally have struggled to cope this year with high demand after the lifting of pandemic travel restrictions, because of staff shortages.

Emirates said: “LHR [London Heathrow] last evening gave us 36 hours to comply with capacity cuts, of a figure that appears to be plucked from thin air.

“Their communications not only dictated the specific flights on which we should throw out paying passengers, but also threatened legal action for non-compliance.

“This is entirely unreasonable and unacceptable, and we reject these demands.”

It added: “Until further notice, Emirates plans to operate as scheduled to and from LHR.”

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Heathrow announced this week that despite airlines’ own cuts to flights – many under the government’s slot amnesty – it was imposing its own cap that would reduce passenger numbers by 4,000 a day until mid-September.

It said that its airline partners should stop selling additional tickets to help with that effort and minimise the effect on passengers and their own operations.

The demand sparked a furious reaction from airlines, with the head of an industry body accusing Heathrow of attempting to maximise its profits at their expense.

Emirates added: “The bottom line is, the LHR management team are cavalier about travellers and their airline customers.

“All the signals of a strong travel rebound were there, and for months, Emirates has been publicly vocal about the matter.

“We planned ahead to get to a state of readiness to serve customers and travel demand, including rehiring and training 1,000 A380 pilots in the past year.

“LHR chose not to act, not to plan, not invest. Now faced with an ‘airmageddon’ situation due to their incompetence and non-action, they are pushing entire burden – of costs and the scramble to sort the mess – to airlines and travellers.

“The shareholders of London Heathrow should scrutinise the decisions of the LHR management team.”

Heathrow has been contacted for comment.

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