British Airways Traffic Falls on Capacity Cuts, Fares
British Airways Plc said passenger traffic fell 2.9 percent last month after the airline cut capacity and didn’t repeat promotional fares that it offered a year earlier.
Economy-class travel declined 3.1 percent in the month, while first- and business-class slid 1.4 percent, the carrier said in a statement today. The number of available seats dropped 2.6 percent.
British Airways has reduced the frequency of services to destinations such as Hong Kong so that it can charge more for fewer seats, allowing it to better take advantage of the recovery in demand for air travel.
“We have delivered about the same volume as last year without promotional activity,” George Stinnes, the London- based company’s treasurer, said today on a conference call. “The revenue that you get is what’s important in this game.”
Unite, the union that represents the carrier’s cabin crew, said that the decline was a result of passengers avoiding booking with British Airways following strikes earlier in the year. Chief Executive Officer Willie Walsh has hired aircraft and used volunteer crew to man planes during 22 days of walkouts this year.
“A worrying number of passengers, in the key premium sector particularly, continue to book away from BA,” the labor organization said in an e-mailed statement. “Passengers pay for service and stability and while Willie Walsh continues to wage war on his workforce he can offer customers neither.”
Stinnes said that customers remained loyal and were “supportive” of the airline.
British Airways rose 0.1 percent to 221.8 pence at 3:59 p.m. in London trading. The stock has advanced 19 percent this year, giving the company a market value of 2.56 billion pounds ($3.95 billion).
To contact the reporters on this story: Steven Rothwell in London at srothwell@bloomberg.net
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