The IAG group, parent company of British Airways and Iberia, published a sharp rise in first-quarter net profit on Friday but warns that the impact of the war in the Middle East will result in annual profits “Lower than we had initially anticipated”. “The first quarter was relatively unaffected by the conflict†more “We expect it to have a greater impact over the remainder of the year as rising fuel costs take hold.”said the group in a press release.
IAG, which also owns the Vueling and Aer Lingus companies, saw its net profit soar by 71% to 301 million euros over the first three months of the year. Its turnover increased by almost 2% to 7.2 billion euros. He highlights “strong demand for (its) network and (its) brands”. The war against Iran launched at the end of February by the United States and Israel led to Tehran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, causing a sudden drop in supplies and a surge in oil prices, which affected particularly the aviation sector.
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“We are actively managing uncertaintyâ€
If IAG had seen its annual profit increase by almost a quarter in 2025 thanks in particular to a reduction in its fuel bill, the price of kerosene more than doubled in the weeks following the start of the attacks against Iran. “We are actively managing the uncertainty created by rising fuel prices and its impact, taking necessary actions regarding revenues, costs and capacity.â€indicated director Luis Gallego, quoted in the press release. On the other hand, regarding the risk of possible fuel shortages, “We are currently not seeing any fuel supply issues in our main markets”said Luis Gallego.
The group specifies that around 3% of its capacity was exposed to the Gulf region before the start of the conflict, mainly operated by British Airways, which had announced to suspend several routes to the region at the start of the war. The destinations concerned are United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Israel, Jordan and Cyprusspecifies IAG on Friday. But a large part of these thefts «a été redéployée»adding planes “on lines where the supply of seats is now reduced due to a fewer number of flights operated by Gulf companies” as «Bangkok, Singapore and Malé».
/2026/05/08/69fd7b420d51d877153894.jpg "REPORTAGE. \"We’re safe here, right?\" : these residents of the Strait of Hormuz tell how their daily lives have been reorganized")
