BA owner plots swoop on Monarch landing slots

IAG is circling the assets of downed rivals after cheaper fuel boosted profits.

The British Airways owner yesterday said it expected profits to hit £1.3bn for the three months to September despite tough competition in the industry. This was up from £1.07bn for the same period last year.

The group, which also owns Iberia and Vueling, has so far saved more than £280m in fuel costs in 2017, with bosses saying it was on course for full-year profits of £2.66bn.

Willie Walsh, chief executive, said IAG was also eyeing the landing slots of Monarch, which collapsed into administration at the start of the month.

The process has been delayed, however, with a judicial review set to decide whether administrators or regulators currently have the rights to sell the slots.

IAG also bid for parts of Air Berlin’s failed business, which was due to fly for the last time last night, but lost out to rival Lufthansa. Both EasyJet and Condor are reportedly in talks about buying the remainder of Air Berlin’s assets.

Speaking to analysts yesterday, Walsh said: ‘We’re certainly interested in slots.’

On Air Berlin, he said that IAG were now ‘just observers’.

Total revenues for the nine months to September rose to £15.53bn, up 1.3pc on the previous year. Passenger unit revenue, a crucial yardstick of success, was up 0.7pc – less than half the rate of growth in the second quarter.