British Airways has reported a better than expected 6.5% increase in operating profits for its second quarter to the end of September. The improvement was due to higher ticket prices and demand for first-class and business class travel.
BA, now headed by former Aer Lingus chief Willie Walsh, also raised its forecast for the current year, saying it expected revenues to rise 6-7% as fuel surcharges and higher passenger numbers helped offset higher fuel prices.
In a statement, Mr Walsh described the results as 'reasonable', but said the airline would have to cut costs further, pointing out that fuel costs rose by 51% in the period.
BA said operating profit was £261m, compared with £245m a year ago. Pre-tax profits of £241m were down from £293m in the same period last year. The figures cover the period during which the airline's services from Heathrow were disrupted by the Gate Gourmet catering dispute. BA today put the cost of that disruption at up to £45m.
The airline also reported a 6.4 percent rise in October passenger traffic. It said load factor - a measure of how efficiently it is filling its planes - was up 0.5 points to 74.7% in the month.
