easyJet buys new aircraft on back of strong profits

Leading low-fares airline easyJet has unveiled a new plan to expand its fleet of aircraft following a 56 per cent increase in profits.

Despite incurring costs of about £4 million from the security alert in August, the orange-liveried carrier took in a pre-tax profit of £129 million over the 12 months to the end of September.

Scores of new routes and an increase in passenger numbers of more than 11 per cent greatly helped the company, which is now planning to buy 52 new Airbus A319 aircraft, with an option to buy up to 75 A320 planes.

The new purchases hold the promise of yet more new destinations from easyJet, whose main hubs are at Gatwick and Luton. It also flies from regional airports such as Bristol, Bournemouth, East Midlands, Liverpool, Newcastle and Aberdeen and recent new routes have included Bristol to Paris and Belfast to Krakow.

Chief executive Andy Harrison said that the order for new aircraft also supports the airline's environmental credentials.

"The combination of our modern fleet, with an average age of 2.2 years, and high utilisation means that we emit nearly 30 per cent fewer emissions per passenger kilometre than traditional airlines flying similar routes," he said.

easyJet wants to see aviation included in the European Emissions Trading Scheme.

The airline's strong profits were matched by rival carrier Ryanair. The Irish airline reported an increase in net profits of 39 per cent in the six months to September, indicating that the UK low-cost sector is in good health in spite of rising fuel costs.

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