International Airlines Group (IAG) has reported its preliminary results for the third quarter of 2020 and capacity outlook for the fourth quarter.
Total revenue declined by 83% to €1.2 billion compared to €7.3 billion last year. Operating result before exceptional items was a €1.3 billion loss compared to a €1.4 billion profit last year.
Passenger capacity declined by 78.6% in the quarter, while traffic declined by 88.0%. Seat load factor declined by 38.8 points to 48.9%.
On September 10, IAG announced a reduction in capacity from -74% to -78% in the third quarter of 2020 and from -46% to -60% in the fourth quarter of 2020, as a result of the levelling off of bookings following the reintroduction of quarantine requirements by many European governments.
IAG now plans for capacity in the fourth quarter of 2020 to be no more than 30% compared to 2019. As a result, the Group no longer expects to reach breakeven in terms of net cash flows from operating activities during the fourth quarter of 2020.
As of September 30, 2020, the Group had total liquidity of €6.6 billion, comprised of €5.0 billion of cash, cash equivalents and interest-bearing deposits and €1.6 billion of undrawn and committed general and aircraft facilities. In addition, €2.74 billion of gross proceeds from the capital increase were received in early October for a total pro-forma liquidity of €9.3 billion. (€1.00 = US$1.18 at time of publication.)