British Airways’ parent company International Airlines Group (IAG) has said that the two-day walkout by pilots in September cost the company €137 million (£121 million).
It also announced it would update its full year 2019 operating profit guidance, predicting profit before exceptional items to be down €215 million (£191m) year-on-year. In 2018 the company reported pre-tax profits of €3.2 billion (£2.8 billion), up 9.5 per cent on the previous year.
Industrial action took place on September 9 and 10, disrupting thousands of passengers.
A second strike planned for September 27 was called off, though BA had already begun flight cancellations and rebookings at that point.
The airline cancelled 4,521 flights but reinstated 2,196 of them, leading to a total of 2,325 cancellations.
It came as British Airways was rounding off months of events and promotions to mark its centenary, such as four aircraft being painted in retro liveries.
The big picture: British Airways brings together retro liveries
The British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA), the union which called the strikes, said last week that it had called off the second strike “before the dispute escalates further and irreparable damage is done to the brand.”
It added that if BA refused “meaningful new negotiations” it would announce further dates.
IAG said in a statement today:
“There have been no further talks between British Airways and BALPA.
“The airline’s offer of a 11.5 per cent pay increase over three years still stands and has been accepted by British Airways’ other unions, representing 90 per cent of the airline’s employees.
“Clearly any further industrial action will additionally impact IAG’s full year 2019 operating profit.”
The company said that its full-year profits would also be affected by disruption caused by the threat of strikes by Heathrow employees, which cost it €33 million (£29m), and “booking trends” in its low-cost segments, particularly Vueling and Level.
