Airlines predict almost $10bn in profits as demand helps push air fares higher

Slender profit margins mean that offering sustainable returns on investments will continue to be a headache, however.

This summer will be better than last for air travel, but there are still challenges in areas such as air-traffic control and strikes in France, IAG chief executive Luis Gallego said.

Global airlines have more than doubled their forecast for the industry's 2023 profit to almost $10bn (€9.3bn), but warned that delays in getting planes to cope with rising demand could dampen their post-pandemic recovery.

"The pandemic years are behind us and borders are open as normal," head of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Willie Walsh told its annual summit of some 300 carriers in Istanbul.