Discounting the inclusion of Aer Lingus, acquired in August 2015, IAG’s passenger revenues at the nine-month point are down by 2.3% at constant currency.
Passenger unit revenues fell by 5.7% as yields decreased at British Airways and Iberia.
IAG attributes the fall to fare pressures on oil-related routes as well as lower demand arising from economic uncertainty.
It links this uncertainty to various elements including the UK’s European Union referendum vote, currency weakness in Latin America, Africa and the Middle East, and the effect of terrorist attacks.
Spanish budget carrier Vueling’s passenger revenues were affected by operational disruption.
Aer Lingus has turned in a “strong” revenue performance since its acquisition, says IAG, highlighting its North Atlantic operations.
While passenger unit revenues for the third quarter were down by 13.7% – and by 5.9% at constant currency – the company says its unit revenue performance improved from the second-quarter level.
Non-fuel unit costs before exceptionals were down 6.9% for the quarter, but up 1.4% at constant currency.
Over the first nine months IAG hiked capacity by 11.3%, including a 4.1% rise excluding Aer Lingus. Traffic increased by 11.8%, generating a rise in load factor to 82.1%.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
