Beast from the East bites Flybe for €4.6m

By Radhika Rukmangadhan

British regional airline Flybe has said cancellations due to the severe weather conditions seen in February and March are expected to impact full-year results, but said early indications of summer trading were encouraging.

The Siberian weather system that weather forecasters dubbed the Beast from the East brought snow, strong winds, and the coldest temperatures in several years to many parts of the UK and Ireland in the two months through March.

Flybe said it was particularly affected by the cold spell as all of its operations are based within the UK and near continent.

The airline cancelled 994 flights due to bad weather in its fourth quarter, compared with 372 flight cancellations in the same period a year earlier. Flybe said it would book about £4m (€4.6m) in lost revenue and additional care and assistance costs in annual results on cancelled and delayed flights.

The company, however, said load factor in the fourth quarter — covering the three months to the end of March — was up 6.8 percentage points to 73.5%, as it reduced capacity. The carrier estimated a 7.5% increase in passenger revenue per seat in the summer, offsetting an expected 7.9% decrease in capacity.

Larger airline groups, such as Ryanair and Aer Lingus owner IAG, weathered the recent snow disruption more comfortably. Both saw increased business in February, a less profitable part of their financial years.

Davy noted at the time, however, it may have been a different matter if the bad weather had fallen at Easter.

- Reuters (additional reporting Irish Examiner)