The airline industry went through rough times at the height of the pandemic, but now many carriers are seeing the height of a profit wave, and British Air is certainly among them, reporting profits for the first nine months of this year at £1.15 billion, or just shy of £50 a second, or $60.
Not only that, but the airline says it had a 20% increase in passengers over the summer quarter, despite having 90% of the seats it flew in 2019. And, it says, the profits and traffic would have been even higher without the summertime disruptions that hit Britain’s air traffic control systems, which canceled hundreds of flights.
But BA officials are not all rosy-eyed for the future, warning that there are future risks from airport delays and disruptions, delays in delivery of new planes and parts, and, in the background, a possible fall-off in demand due to any tough financial times ahead for customers, as well as disruptions caused by possible conflicts in regions such as the Middle East.
After their appalling behaviour at the start of the pandemic, I vowed that I would never use them again – and I haven’t. I am pleased to say that none of the money they are lining their pockets with is mine!