EasyJet will operate 1,000 flights daily in the month of August

EasyJet Is Making Less Money From Bag Fees Than Its Competitors ...

EasyJet today said it is operating more flights than previously planned due to demand exceeding expectations.

The airline is expanding its schedule to 40% of normal capacity between July and September, compared with the 30% it predicted in June.

In the three months to the end of June, the budget carrier made just £7 million in revenue after the company's fleet was grounded from March 30 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

It started flying again in the middle of June and carried 117,000 passengers in the 132,000 seats it had available in the last two weeks of the quarter, easyJet said.

Johan Lundgren, easyJet chief executive, said: 'Returning to the skies again allows us to do what we do best and take our customers on much-needed holidays.

'I am extremely proud of all of our people whose care and commitment, along with the introduction of our industry-leading biosecurity measures, have resulted in customer satisfaction scores reaching a high of 80% since the re-start, an increase of 13 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

'I am really encouraged that we have seen higher than expected levels of demand with load factor of 84% in July with destinations like Faro and Nice remaining popular with customers.

'Our bookings for the remainder of the summer are performing better than expected and as a result, we have decided to expand our schedule over the fourth quarter to fly circa 40% of capacity.

'This increased flying will allow us to connect even more customers to family or friends and to take the breaks they have worked hard for.'

EasyJet's share price surged at this morning's news, gaining 8% in morning trading.

The airline was forced to ground its planes during the coronavirus lockdown and is set to make 4,500 job cuts.

Its rival, British Airways, has already said it plans to cut 12,000 roles - prompting union bosses to threaten a strike.

Unite leader Len McCluskey claimed BA chief executive Alex Cruz had 'published a timetable to fire and rehire thousands of your workforce on August 7'.

Mr McCluskey also told how MPs and newspapers alike have condemned the actions of the Spanish boss, adding: 'Perhaps you don't understand that the British sense of fair play runs deep in the psyche of the British people.'

It came after the UK Government advised against all but essential travel to Spain after the emergence of a second wave of coronavirus in parts of the country.

BA has so far used state furlough schemes, accessed £300million of UK Government loans and retired its fleet of 747 jumbo jets earlier than planned.

EasyJet's success in restarting their services will encourage the wider aviation industry, which has been one of the worst-hit sectors during the coronavirus crisis.

Last month, Ryanair chief Michael O'Leary told staff to prepare for more cuts after announcing a £166m loss in the three months up to June.

In March regional carrier Flybe went bust and in September last year Thomas Cook collapsed stranding 150,000 UK holidaymakers abroad. 

Yesterday, Hays Travel - which bought 555 Thomas Cook travel agents last year - announce it would cut up to 878 of its 4,500 jobs.

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