Airport operator BAA today showed an improvement in business as people continued to shake off political and economic concerns and get back in the air.

BAA said there had been a month-on-month recovery across its seven airports, which include Gatwick, Heathrow and Stansted.

Total passenger numbers were down 3.9 per cent in January when compared to the same month in 2001 but the figure was an improvement on December's 6.4 per cent slide.

The group has suffered as September 11 and the global economy conspire to keep people at home. In October, passenger numbers slumped by 12 per cent.

But BAA said today that the eight million people who had passed through its doors in January represented a "continued recovery", with all major markets showing improvements.

North Atlantic and domestic traffic had the strongest showing, down by 10.1 per cent and 2.7 per cent respectively. In December, they were off 13 per cent and 6.5 per cent.

Gatwick carried 1.63 million people in January, a 16.4 per cent slump on January 2001, but BAA said: "By the end of February, new routes by easyJet will come on line, giving them a total of 22 daily departures from Gatwick, making it the airport's second largest scheduled airline."