British Airways has reported a half-year profit of £158m
($252m), its first in two years, as the company prepares to merge with Iberia
of Spain.
The stronger-than-expected results come despite the
impact of cabin crew strikes and the Icelandic ash cloud.
Meanwhile, Iberia has reported a nine-month profit of 53m
euros (£46m; $74m).
Separately, it has emerged that BA boss Willie Walsh and
other executives will receive substantial pay rises after the two airlines
merge.
Analysts had been expecting a profit figure for BA of
about £75m – half of what the airline actually made.
Revenues were up 8.4% to £4.4bn, thanks to a particularly
strong 39% rise in cargo revenues, according to
the airlines official release.
Costs were cut by 1.5%. The company said that cost
control was something that it continued to focus on.
Performance was much stronger during the latter half of
the six-month reporting period.
Pre-tax profits in the three months to September – which
was free of strikes and ash – were £322m.
This more than offset a loss in the previous quarter,
which saw 15 days of strikes as well as the eruption of the Eyjafjallajoekull
volcano in Iceland in April.
The company also suffered under European air traffic
control strikes during the period, though Mr Walsh boasted that despite this,
74% of BA’s Heathrow flights and 84% of its Gatwick flights still departed on
time.
The half-year results mark a complete turnaround from the
£292m loss that BA made during the same period in 2009, at the depth of the
recession.
British Airways and Iberia will merge on 21 January.
Mr Walsh will become chief executive of the combined
company – International Consolidated Airlines Group – and will see his basic
pay rise 12% to £825,000 a year.
He will also be eligible for performance-related bonuses
under the merger deal, that will be capped at twice his basic pay, or £1.65m.
Mr Walsh’s colleague, BA chief financial officer Keith
Williams, will see his basic pay rise 43% to £630,000 after his promotion to
replace Mr Walsh as BA chief executive within the enlarged company.
Mr Williams’ bonus will be capped at 1.5 times his basic
salary.
claiming it would make family holidays unaffordable for
many.
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