British Airways owner IAG is banking on the reopening of transatlantic travel to revive its business after warning it will lose another €3bn this year.
The group, which owns airlines including Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling, flew just over 40 per cent of its normal schedule in the third quarter. It said thanks to the “significant” industry-wide recovery under way it will increase this to 60 per cent in the final three months of the year.
IAG reported a €485m operating loss before exceptional items for the third quarter, compared with the €1.3bn lost the previous year. The airline forecasts a loss of approximately €3bn for the full year, compared with the €4.3bn it lost last year.
Luis Gallego, IAG’s chief executive, said Monday’s reopening of the US border to foreign nationals represents “a pivotal moment for our industry”.
BA is particularly reliant on the lucrative north Atlantic market, which has been effectively shut off since early 2020, leaving IAG racking up huge losses during the pandemic.
IAG has built up a firewall of cash to see it through the crisis, and had access to €10.6bn of liquidity by the end of September, and €12.4bn in net debt.
“In the short term, we are focused on getting ready to operate as much capacity as we can and ensuring IAG is set up to return to profitability in 2022,” Gallego said.
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