British Airways has matched industry expectations by
posting a £415 million pre-tax profit for the year ending
March 31 – £185 million more than in 2004.
Earlier this week, analysts were tipping BA would make a profit
ranging between £250 million and half a billion pounds.
But with the number of aircraft seats filled at record levels,
according to chief executive Rod Eddington, the carrier has managed
to exceed last year’s performance.
Eddington added: “Yield, down 4.4%, continues to be under pressure
and is down for the third year running. But these are good results
driven by continued cost control and strong demand for our
products.”
He said BA had exceeded its 2003-05 business plan savings target of
£450 million by £7 million through greater use of
technology, such as self-service check-in kiosks in terminals, and
increased web bookings.