Custom at BA drops 12.5% in one month

By SIMON NEVILLE
Updated: 16:11 EST, 5 July 2010

A series of walkouts by British Airways cabin crew saw the carrier lose nearly 500,000 customers last month, compared to a year earlier.

In June 2009 2.9m customers used the airline, but only 2.6m flew with BA last month - a drop of 12.5pc.

The results also show that planes were only 77.5pc full, compared with 79.6pc in June 2009.

Higher-paying business and firstclass flyers, who generate the most profit for the airline, fell 9.2pc while standard class customers dropped 11.4pc.

BA has seen its top-paying passenger numbers hit a low recently, recording just one underlying increase in the last 14 months.

Continuing uncertainty about future strike action through the summer means passenger numbers are expected to drop further. The airline is waiting for the outcome of a ballot of Unite union members.

Last month there were nine days of strikes, following a series of walkouts throughout the year. It has cost the airline more than £150m.

Budget carrier Ryanair boasted a 15pc increase in bookings last month. It carried 6.7m passengers in June, compared with 5.8m for the same month last year.