BA announces record pre-tax loss of £292m

Published on Friday 6 November 2009 10:07

BRITISH Airways remained deep in the red today after it announced a record pre-tax loss of £292 million for the six months to the end of September.

The airline, which recorded a loss of 401m in its previous financial year, said total revenues slumped by almost 14 per cent in the period.

It is the first time that BA has recorded a first half loss – normally a buoyant period for the airline as it includes the holiday season.

Today's deficit is around 40m higher than City analysts had been expecting. Even when items such as pension costs are excluded BA made a loss of 111m , against a profit of 140m a year earlier.

The industry as a whole is expected to lose 11 billion US dollars (6.65 billion) this year as a result of the recession's impact on passenger numbers and demand for business class travel.

Willie Walsh, chief executive, said the company reduced costs by some 400m after manpower was cut by 1,900 roles through reduced overtime, increased part-time working and voluntary redundancy.