UK Airline Posts Record Numbers Amid Ryanair Crisis

EasyJet has posted record passenger numbers for summer, as it cashes in on Ryanair’s cancelled flights crisis. The airline is encouraging profit forecasts for the financial year.

The upbeat financial update came despite a £100 million ($130.7 million) currency loss since the Brexit vote.

EasyJet carried 24.1 million passengers during the three months to September end, filling 95.6% of seats.

Profits for the financial year to Sept. 30 were estimated to be between £405 million and £410 million ($529-535 million).

This figure was at the upper end of estimates (which peaked at £420 million/$549 million), representing a “good performance” for the airline.

EasyJet CEO Carolyn McCall said: “EasyJet has finished the year with continued positive momentum, delivering both a strong final quarter and a strong second half.

“Passenger numbers and load factor in the final quarter set new records and the second half profit was over £100 million ($130.6 million) higher than summer 2016.”

EasyJet’s update comes as Ryanair offers its pilots improved pay and working conditions in response to the cancelled flights crisis.

The Irish airline started to cancel flights en masse last month over an issue surrounding pilot holiday leave allocation affecting hundreds of thousands of passengers.

Ryanair’s CEO Michael O’Leary has written to pilots to offer them incentives to stay on board with the airline.

As Ryanair fights to keep its staff happy, refund customers affected by cancellations and appease the requests of Civil Aviation Authority, easyJet is cashing in.