The social unrest at Brussels Airlines revolved around the pay and employment conditions of the staff. In mid-January, pilots went on strike for a day and at the end of February, flight attendants stopped work for three days.
The pilots threatened a new strike at the end of March, but this was still averted. “As soon as a strike is threatened, we see an immediate impact on our travelers,” said Nina Öwerdick, the financial director of Brussels Airlines, in a press release. “When there is uncertainty, people stop booking.”
Brussels Airlines estimates that the social unrest cost it approximately 14 million euros. In the meantime, agreements have been reached for both pilots and cabin crew.
Lower demand for travel
With more than 1.66 million passengers, Brussels Airlines performed 4 percent better in the first quarter than in the same period last year, and turnover also increased: by 3 percent to 289 million euros.
But society suffered more losses. The operating loss (adjusted EBIT) amounted to -58 million euros, compared to -43 million euros a year earlier.
The first quarter of the year is traditionally weaker in the aviation sector as travel demand is lower. It is not abnormal for an airline to make a loss.
Brussels Airlines also maintains its ambition to make more profit this year than in 2023. The operating profit then amounted to 53 million euros, a record.
In the second quarter, Brussels Airlines, part of the German aviation group Lufthansa, expects, among other things, to reopen the route to the Kenyan capital Nairobi (in June), after an absence of nine years.
