British Airways profit after restructuring programme

BRITISH Airways turned in a pre-tax profit of £25m for the three months to December 31 and said in the absence of war in the Mideast it expects this year to be profitable.

But it added a warning that this year would be tougher than last and that no growth in revenue is expected. BA has adopted a cost-cutting and redundancy programme which has boosted the bottom line.

The profit for the third quarter compares to a pre-tax loss of £160m for the same period in the previous financial year.

Operating profit was £53m. Total turnover for the airline for the period was £1,857m, while the total passenger load factor was 70.9%.

For the nine months to December 31, total profit before tax was £335m.

BA said significant reductions were achieved in almost all categories in the third quarter.

BA has had a total headcount reduction of 9,209 and said it will achieve 10,000 by next month and 13,000 by March 2004.

The British carrier said borrowings, net of cash, short-term loans and deposits, were £5,186m, down £1.4bn from the December 2001 peak.

BA chief executive Rod Eddington said: “Our cost control continues to make us a leaner, fitter and more competitive airline.

“Our total costs in the last 12 months are £1bn lower than the previous year which demonstrates the determination of our people to deliver.

“We have restructured our European shorthaul business and the new fares are now available on almost 180 routes with more customers than ever booking via the net,” he said.

British Airways chairman Lord Marshall said in the absence of hostilities in the Mideast, the airline expected this year to be profitable.