Walsh praises BA recovery

British Airways chief executive Willie Walsh yesterday hailed the company’s performance after a strong set of results for the year to the end of March — the former Aer Lingus chief’s first 12 months in charge at the British flag carrier.

Pre-tax profits at BA rose to £620 million, from £513m a year earlier; while operating profit rose from £556m to £705m. The fourth quarter of the year saw pre-tax profits of £91m, reversing a £6m loss from the same period the previous year.

Net debt levels fell by £1.3bn to £1.6bn. Turnover was up by 9.6% to £8.5bn. The airline’s short haul business is profitable for the first time in 10 years.