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Thursday, November 12, 2026 · UTC
Markets

British Airways owner IAG misses profit forecast and plans to fly less

It expects its first annual fall in capacity since 2022. Middle East disruption from the Iran war and an 8.9 billion euro fuel bill are behind it.

Ruth Calder
Markets Writer
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Stands on 10 placed sources from 2 publishers.
As of 2026-11-12 01:54 UTC. Market figures are as the cited sources reported them at that time and may have moved since. This is news, not investment advice.
IAG, the owner of British Airways, reported a third-quarter operating profit before exceptional items of €1.73 billion.[1] That missed the analyst consensus of €1.81 billion.[2] The shortfall is €80 million, or a little over 4%. Flying less IAG forecasts that its capacity for 2026 will be slightly lower.[3] It will be the group's first annual decline in capacity since 2022.[4] Disruption to flights in the Middle East, from the Iran war and other conflicts, is affecting its operations.[5] Fuel The group forecasts a total fuel cost of €8.9 billion for 2026.[6] It is 71% hedged for the rest of this year and 45% hedged for 2027.[7] More than half of next year's fuel is still exposed to the market price. Demand Bookings have held. Eighty-five percent of the seats IAG expects to sell in the fourth quarter are booked.[8] The market IAG shares moved around 1% in early trade on 6 November.[9] Luis Gallego is the group's chief executive.[10]
Proof10 sources · 2 publishers · signed
What this stands on
  1. IAG reported third quarter operating profit before exceptions of €1.73 billion. · rte.ieIreland
  2. IAG's third quarter profit missed analyst consensus of €1.81 billion. · rte.ieIreland
  3. IAG forecasts 2026 annual capacity will be slightly lower. · rte.ieIreland
  4. This will be IAG's first annual capacity decline since 2022. · rte.ieIreland
  5. Middle East flight disruptions from the Iran war and conflicts impact IAG operations. · rte.ieIreland
  6. IAG forecasts total 2026 fuel cost will be €8.9 billion. · rte.ieIreland
  7. IAG is 45% fuel hedged for 2027 and 71% hedged for the rest of 2026. · rte.ieIreland
  8. 85% of IAG fourth quarter 2026 expected seats are booked. · live.euronext.com
  9. IAG shares fluctuated around 1% in early trade on 2026-11-06. · live.euronext.com
  10. Luis Gallego is IAG chief executive. · rte.ieIreland
The one we could place publishes from Ireland. 1 could not be placed by their address. None is an official body: that part stands on reporting, not on the underlying document or transcript.
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