Aer Lingus owner soars to record annual earnings on travel boom

By Holly Williams, PA Business Editor

The owner of Aer Lingus has notched up record annual earnings after cashing in on the bounce back in global travel demand.

International Airlines Group (IAG) reported underlying operating profits of €3.5 billion for 2023, nearly three times the €1.3 billion in 2022 and higher than its pre-pandemic peak.

The group – which also owns airlines British Airways, Iberia and Vueling – said demand continues to be robust, particularly from leisure travellers, with the group’s airlines 92 per cent booked for the first quarter of the year and 62 per cent booked up for the first half.

Its results showed that pre-tax profits for the year jumped to €3.1 billion from €415 million in 2022.

In the fourth quarter, underlying earnings lifted 5 per cent to €502 million.

Luis Gallego, IAG chief executive, said: “In 2023, IAG more than doubled its operating margin and profits compared to 2022… recovering capacity to close to pre-Covid 19 levels in most of its core markets.”

The group said capacity for the final three months of 2023 was at 98.6 per cent of the levels seen before the pandemic struck in 2019, with full-year capacity at 95.7 per cent of those levels.

At BA, capacity recovered more slowly to 90.1 per cent of 2019 levels due to the slower rebound in Asia Pacific.

The group said it expects to grow overall capacity by around 7 per cent in 2024.