Record high profit for British Airways; comeback for air travel 

The owner of British Airways has declared record half-year profits, helped by higher prices and the continued recovery in travel post-pandemic.

Airline group IAG declared operating profits of €1.3bn (£1.1bn) after being uplifted by a “strong” comeback in leisure travel.

Profits jump for British Airways: 

At the same time last year, it lost €446m. IAG chief Luis Gallego said the company was seeking to return to pre-pandemic demand levels by the end of the year.

However, the firm – which even owns Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling – said that while there was no indication of weakness in forward bookings, it was “mindful of wider uncertainties” that could impact fuel costs and consumer trust in the months ahead.

IAG said flight capacity returned to 94% of pre-pandemic levels in the year’s first half. Prices were up by nearly 9.5% on average, and income reached €13.6bn – an increase of almost 45% from a year before.

IAG said it had witnessed a “strong leisure traffic recovery”, adding premium leisure needs “continued to perform very well”.

“Customer demand remains strong across the group, particularly for leisure travel, with around 80% of passenger revenue for the third quarter already booked,” stated Mr Gallego.

“And our airlines have put in place plans to support operations during the busy summer period.” Nevertheless, IAG said that a few of its operations “are not where we would want them to be, affecting our overall customer service”.

It said French air traffic control strikes impacted most of its airlines, while international supply chain problems were “reducing aircraft availability”. The firm said British Airways was “particularly affected” because of its “London exposure and complex schedule”.