Budget airline easyJet has raised ticket prices to manage rising fuel costs.
The airline reported a £552 million pre-tax loss for the six months to March 31, despite a 12 per cent rise in revenue to £3.9 billion.
Kenton Jarvis, chief executive of easyJet, said: "We continue to see positive late bookings since the conflict began, overall bookings for the summer period are behind where they were at this point last year."
According to the Financial Times, easyJet attributed the dip in early bookings to passenger concerns over jet fuel supply, linked to the Iran conflict.
By the end of March, 58 per cent of flights scheduled between April and September had been sold, down 2 percentage points compared to the previous year.
In response, easyJet has raised its minimum ticket price and is actively reviewing discretionary spending.
The airline said it faces a £200 million increase in fuel costs this summer.
It has hedged 72% of its fuel needs for the season at $726 per metric tonne.
The spot price for jet fuel was $1,350 this week.
The airline said that every $100 increase in fuel price translates to about £35 million cost.
Despite earlier warnings of possible shortages, easyJet said it has secured enough fuel for its operations.
Ryanair has also suspended financial guidance due to similar uncertainties in the aviation sector.
Newsquest has approached easyJet for comment.
easyJet on fall in summer bookings
easyJet said bookings for summer flights are lower than the same period last year because of uncertainty caused by the conflict in the Middle East.
The airline said it has sold 58% of its seats for the six months to the end of September, down two percentage points from a year ago.
But short-notice bookings in the month of departure are up year-on-year.
There have been fears that some flights from the UK could be cancelled because of fuel shortages.
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Jarvis said the airline is “not seeing any disruption to fuel supply” as he urged people to “book with confidence”.
He went on: “Despite conflict in the Middle East creating near-term uncertainty, easyJet is well placed to manage the current environment, supported by one of the strongest investment-grade balance sheets in European aviation.”
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