In a Q3 trading update issued on Tuesday (26 July), the airline reported a pre-tax loss of £114 million due to the disruption’s impact – although earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, and restructuring or rent costs (Ebitdar), saw profit of £103 million.
More than 22 million passengers flew with easyJet in the third quarter of 2022 – a sevenfold increase on the same period last year – representing 87% of 2019 capacity.
The airline said “the unprecedented ramp up” across the aviation sector when all Covid restrictions on international travel lifted in spring, coupled with “a tight labour market”, had resulted in “widespread operational challenges” and caused higher levels of cancellations.
Despite the issues, easyJet said it operated 95% of its planned Q£ schedule , adding how recent capacity caps at Gatwick and Amsterdam’s Schiphol had led to July operations “being much improved”.
“EasyJet remains focused on ensuring smooth operations this summer and will continue to fine tune our schedule if required,” the airline said.
More than 70% of customers affected by disruptions were moved onto an alternate flight within 24 hours, easyJet claimed, with the airline describing the current summer issues as “a one-off” with expectations of the aviation sector building greater resilience in time for 2023 peak travel periods.
EasyJet said bookings had built through Q3 with solid demand for Q4, which is currently 71% booked and showing load factors “slightly ahead” of 2019. October half-term is currently booked in line with capacity at 95% of 2019 levels.
