Flybe profits nosedive on higher costs

● Carrier says Scotland remains ‘core part of our network’

had operated flights on Flybe’s behalf since 2008 until recently.

Flybe said yesterday: “We are further strengthening our connectivity in Scotland. The new Heathrow routes continue to perform in line or ahead of our expectations, and our turboprop aircraft are now an established part of Heathrow’s operations.

“In addition, we recently embarked on a commercial partnership with Eastern Airways, franchising Eastern’s existing routes as Flybe.”

Flybe said trading remained “encouraging” in the start of the second half so far, with 54 per cent of seats sold against 50 per cent a year ago. The group was sent swinging to a loss last year after slowing consumer demand and overcapacity.

The firm posted a £19.9m pre-tax loss in the year to 31 March, compared with a profit of £2.7m the previous year.

Airline analyst Gerald Khoo at Liberum said the latest set of interim results showed an “encouraging” commercial performance. He noted: “As capacity growth has slowed, load factors and unit revenues have improved considerably. However, a number of cost headwinds impacted the bottom line, and while some will not recur, we believe caution is warranted.”