- IAG revealed that its operating profits rose to €68m (£58.5m) in the first quarter
- The company carried 26.4 million passengers during the period, more than 2 million more than the previous year.
International Airlines Group (IAG) profits soared during the first three months of 2024 thanks to strong demand for leisure travel.
British Airways’ parent company, which also runs Iberia and Aer Lingus, posted an operating profit of €68m (£58.5m) during the first quarter, up from €9m (£7.7m). pounds sterling) during the same period last year.
Turnover rose 9.2 percent to €5.5 billion as IAG benefited from the continued post-pandemic recovery from overseas holidays and the Easter holiday weekend being brought earlier than usual.
Flying higher: British Airways parent company IAG, which also runs Iberia and Aer Lingus, revealed its operating profits rose to €68m (£58.5m) in the first quarter.
IAG carried 26.4 million passengers during the period, up more than 2 million year on year, supported by increased traffic between major European cities as well as to Latin America and the Caribbean.
Growth remained stalled by the war between Israel and Hamas and tensions with Iran that depressed travel to the Middle East.
However, the company’s passenger load factor – the percentage of seats occupied by customers – increased 1.6 percentage points to 83.1 percent, while its total capacity expanded 7 percent to 76.7 million seats.
Meanwhile, unit fuel costs decreased about 5 percent due to lower average fuel prices and the delivery of more efficient aircraft.
And net debts plummeted by 2 billion euros since last December to 7.4 billion euros, which is also more than a third less than the 11.7 billion euros it had in 2021.
Luis Gallego, CEO of IAG, commented: “Our transformation initiatives and increased demand, including during the Easter holidays, have generated another very good set of results with improvements in both revenue and operating profit.
“Our Group benefits from the strength of our core markets (North Atlantic, South Atlantic and Inner Europe) and the performance of our brands.”
IAG said it was “well positioned” for the summer season, having enjoyed record performance in the third quarter of 2023 thanks to high traffic on Atlantic routes and to leisure destinations across Europe.
In mid-April, EasyJet said it expected to achieve another record summer despite conflict in the Middle East and inflationary pressures across Europe.
Many consumers continue to prioritize holidays abroad amid the cost of living crisis, with many simply choosing cheaper destinations rather than staying at home.
Victoria Scholar, chief investment officer at Interactive Investor, said: “Clearly, individuals and families are prioritizing their summer vacations whenever they can, most likely at the expense of other discretionary spending.”
International airline group shares They rose 1 percent to 184.6 pence on Friday morning, but remain well below their pre-pandemic levels.