British Airways says the bad weather that engulfed the UK, Europe and USA in December 2010 will cost it an estimated £50 million in the third quarter of its current financial year.
Detailing its traffic and capacity statistics for the month, the carrier says that revenue passenger kilometres fell by 8.3% compared with December 2009. Airport closures and reduced operating capacities caused by the extreme conditions, which saw unusually heavy snowfalls, equated to a reduction in capacity of around 12% compared with a year previously.
Cargo Tonne Kilometres fell by 10.2%.
BA says that the ripples from the weather disruption will continue into this month due to cancelled return journeys. However, it adds that underlying market conditions remain positive.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
