Budget airline easyJet has revealed quarterly losses after it took a £133 million hit from recent airport disruption. It reported a pre-tax loss of £114 million for the three months to June 30, blaming “widespread operational challenges” and flight cancellations due to staff shortages at airports.
The result marked an improvement on the £318 million loss seen a year ago, but comes despite its passenger numbers jumping more than seven fold to 22 million in the quarter. However, easyJet boss Johan Lundgren said: “We have taken action to build the additional resilience needed this summer and the operation has now normalised.
"Despite the loss this quarter due to the short-term disruption issues, the return to flying at scale has demonstrated that the strategic initiatives launched during the pandemic are delivering now and with more to come.”
Almost three quarters of passengers affected by flight cancellations earlier in the summer were moved with alternative departures within 24 hours, easyJet insisted. Mr Lundgren added: “Delivering for customers this summer remains our highest priority. During the quarter we carried seven times more customers than the same time last year and operated 95 per cent of our schedule."
The airline stated: “The unprecedented ramp up across the aviation industry, coupled with a tight labour market, has resulted in widespread operational challenges culminating in higher levels of cancellations than normal.”
The carrier said it “remains focused on ensuring smooth operations this summer" and will continue to fine tune its schedule if required.
For more stories from where you live, visit InYourArea.
