Passenger numbers at seven major UK airports showed "no significant dip" despite the Gulf war and SARS epidemic, operator BAA said yesterday.The airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted, handled 10.9 million passengers in May, an increase of 2 per cent on the same month a year earlier.

BAA said the impact of the Middle East conflict and SARS outbreak earlier this year had not been as serious as previous crises when the first Gulf war knocked demand by more than 25 per cent and September 11th caused passenger numbers to drop 12 per cent.

A BAA spokeswoman said: "We have seen no significant dip in overall traffic levels. People seem more resilient towards the external pressures on them."

The latest figures from BAA show traffic to and from the Middle East picked up quickly following the end of military action in Iraq.