Aer Lingus has today reported an operating profit before exceptional items of €196m for the third quarter of 2023, which it said reflected very strong demand for travel through the summer months.

The airline, which is owned by IAG, said its operating profit in the quarter exceeds that achieved in the equivalent quarters in both 2019 and 2022.

The figure for 2019 came in at €169m and the figure for 2022 came in at €139m.

“The performance allows Aer Lingus to continue to focus on repairing the airline’s balance sheet which is key to funding future investment,” the airline said.

Its parent company IAG today reported better-than-expected record profits on robust summer travel demand but warned of risks of political and macroeconomic uncertainties.

But despite today’s strong figures, Aer Lingus said that after a challenging first quarter of 2023 and higher operating costs, the cumulative operating profit achieved since the start of 2023 is below that achieved to the same point in 2019.

It said it was also experiencing increased seasonality in the business and continuing high fuel prices.

While leisure travel delivered strongly in the third quarter, it said that business travel has not yet fully recovered.

Aer Lingus increased its capacity on short haul routes during the third quarter by 14% compared to the same time last year.

It noted that the increased short haul capacity performed very well with Mediterranean sun destinations and destinations such as Northern Spain, Greek Islands and Croatia all in high demand.

Aer Lingus European city routes also performed well, with strong demand including transatlantic customers seeking connectivity between North America and Europe, it added.

The airline also increased its capacity on long haul routes by 15% on the third quarter of 2022.

It said that transatlantic routes and frequency were expanded to meet increased North American passenger demand for both Irish and European destinations, underpinning its Dublin hub strategy.

The peak summer performance culminated in the arrival of over 40,000 US visitors in August for the Aer Lingus College Football Classic game between Notre Dame and Navy in Dublin.

Aer Lingus has also announced a further expansion to the North American network for Summer 2024, with new direct services next year to Denver, Colorado and Minneapolis-St. Paul.