British Airways boss Willie Walsh issued an apology to passengers for the series of disruptions they have suffered in recent months, as the carrier announced a 27% fall in profits for the final three months of 2006.
The airline cancelled and then reinstated 1,300 flights this week after cabin crew called off a strike.
It cancelled another 800 due to fog before Christmas, triggering two weeks of baggage-handling problems, and bore the brunt of disruption around the security scare in August, forcing passengers at Heathrow to queue in marquees.
Walsh said: “The patience and loyalty of our customers has been tested and I want to apologise for the inconvenience.” He added: “We are now re-focusing on customer service.”
BA estimates the strike threat this week cost it £80 million in lost revenue.
The earlier disruptions led to a 27% fall in operating profits year on year to £129 million for the three months to December. Yet BA reported profits of £571 million for the financial year to date, only £25 million down on the same time last year.
Walsh acknowledged: “These are mixed results, with costs up 3% reflecting higher fuel costs.”
He restated the intention to cut £450 million in costs and hit an operating margin of 10% by March 2008.
The operating margin for the most recent quarter was 6.2%, down from 8.6% a year ago.