Heathrow executives say the current surge in demand will wane in a "winter freeze" as the UK's biggest airport predicted more losses through 2022.
As a result of higher fuel costs, the war in Ukraine and an expected fourth Covid wave, Heathrow says it expects a drop off in passengers after a summer surge.
Revenue rebounded to £516mln in the first quarter of 2022 but demand for flights was still “very volatile”, said the airport in a trading update.
Pandemic losses at the airport have now topped £4bn, it added with hopes of a recovery after the summer in serious doubt, it said.
In the first three months of the year, Heathrow handled 9.7mln passengers, up 8mln over the same period last year, with many heading to North America and Europe.
But as a result of restrictions to combat the Omicron strain of Covid-19, January and February were "much weaker than expected," said executives.
In anticipation of a summer vacation boom, Heathrow raised its passenger forecast for 2022 from 45.5mln to 52.8mln.
In spite of this, the airport expects passenger numbers to "drop off significantly after the summer" due to recent headwinds.
Easter and the weeks before were beset by delays and cancellations, with social media showing people queuing at airports over the holiday break.
Red tape and staff shortages were cited as the causes of delays.