British Airways owner IAG reported a 1.3 billion euro third-quarter loss on Thursday as coronavirus restrictions depressed travel, forcing it to further cut its flying schedule for the rest of the year.
The loss was far larger than the 920 million euros forecast by analysts, illustrating the scale of the challenge faced by IAG’s new boss Luis Gallego who took over in September.
As a second wave of COVID-19 infections spreads across Europe, airlines are facing a bleak winter and IAG joins Lufthansa, Ryanair and easyJet in cutting back already anaemic schedules.
IAG said on Thursday that for the fourth quarter it would fly no more than 30% of the capacity it flew a year earlier, lower than previous guidance of 40%.
