Aer Lingus losses almost double to €103m as CEO says it has enough fuel for summer flights

Ellen O'Donoghue

Aer Lingus had an operating loss of €103 million for the first three months of the year.

That is almost double the airline's losses of €55 million in the same period last year.

It said that the first quarter of the year is typically the weakest, and this year it was affected even more by fuel price increases and increased carbon costs.

Passenger numbers grew by just over one per cent, supported by new long and short-haul routes.

Aer Lingus has said it will have enough fuel for the summer, but it is reviewing costs after the increase in losses during the first quarter.

Fears of jet fuel shortages have been growing after some airlines axed services following the closure of the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping lane, which squeezed global oil supplies.

Aer Lingus chief executive, Lynne Embleton, confirmed on Friday that the Irish carrier was confident it would have enough fuel to operate its summer schedule.

However, she cautioned that the airline was not immune to the impact of sharp rises in fuel prices, which contributed to losses of €103 million in the three months to the end of March.

“In the context of a potentially longer-term change in fuel prices and a more uncertain global environment, we are actively reviewing our cost base and our schedule beyond the summer to ensure that we operate as efficiently as possible and are positioned well for the future,” said Embleton.

Aer Lingus also blamed increased carbon costs, rising competition on transatlantic services and one-off charges related to the closure of its Manchester base for the shortfall.

However, the airline grew passenger numbers by 1.1 per cent over the three months and launched new services, including Dublin to Cancún in Mexico and Turin in Italy, and Cork to Geneva and Prague.