THE Civil Aviation Authority is consulting to increase the cap on Heathrow’s price per passenger to between £24.50 and £34.50.

The charge is set to be raised from £22, with the exact increased figure to depend on various factors such as passenger demand and commercial revenue.

The plans will come into effect from summer 2022 and may be higher if the airport continues to struggle in those areas.

An initial cap of £30 will be introduced in early 2022.

CAA chief executive Richard Moriarty said: “While international air travel is still recovering, setting a price control for Heathrow Airport against the backdrop of so much uncertainty means we have had to adapt our approach.

“Our principal objective is to further the interests of consumers while recognising the challenges the industry has faced throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

“These initial proposals seek to protect consumers against unfair charges, and will allow Heathrow to continue to appropriately invest in keeping the airport resilient, efficient and one that provides a good experience for passengers.”

Charges will be added to the cost of the price of the tickets, meaning the cap increase will hit passengers.

In July, Heathrow said it had lost £2.9 billion due to the pandemic and passenger numbers were 38% of pre-pandemic levels.

Earlier this year, airport bosses had asked the regulator to set the total it was allowed to raise from increased charges to £2.6 billion after the CAA set the cap to £300 million.