Will Brexit impact LHR transit times?
 

I have a trip to Nice next May. BA flies MSY-LHR-NCE with a 2 hour layover, which is both the least expensive and fastest way for me to get there.

Has there been any discussion in Britain about the potential impact of Brexit on transit times at Heathrow? Is there any way to know if a 2 hour layover will be enough?

Hi,

Personally I think in May it will still be business as normal as there will be a 2 year transition period. Whilst arrangements for arriving pax are still to be determined, I believe transit will be unaffected ( you will clear immigration and customs at NCE)

A 2 hr layover should be plenty of time as the MCT for a T5-T5 connection is 1 hour

Regards

TBS

Though strictly speaking "nothing is agreed until everything is agreed", and we have to wait until the end of October for that (and probably a bit beyond), as things stand there is a transition draft agreement which takes us to 31 December 2020, and the current newspaper headlines essentially relate to what happens from 2021 onwards. During the transition to 2020, very little will change for air travel, and thereafter, as things are currently looking, I don't foresee any big changes for BA's transit passengers. Two hours should be fine.

There is no reason transit should be affected. In the UK, you currently are getting the exact same transit experience whether you are flying from the EU/non-EU to the EU-non-EU. The only exception are domestic flights.

The only potential - as well as extremely unlikely - impact of Brexit is actually a lot more dire. There is still no agreement on airline rights meaning that there is still the need for some agreement of sort of UK airlines - including BA - to still be able to fly to the EU and vice-versa. A transition period has been agreed in principle so short of an always possible major souring of the relationship between the UK and the rest of the EU, the potential risk period would likely to come after December 2020. Even then, as mentioned, the possibility of an end to traffic rights seems extremely unlikely, but at this stage and given the remaining distance between British and EU positions on many crucial aspects of a prospective deal as well as the vibe of the most radical politicians around, nothing can technically be excluded. For what it's worth, I would personally rate the chances of even a temporary suspension of traffic rights at below 1%, but then, what do I know?....

It's actually to all international destinations as all of the UK's air agreements are now made through the EU and the old bilateral agreements have ceased to exist. Welcome to the crazy world of Brexit.

Very true.

Great, thanks.