Aer Lingus' FY2016 outlook strong as IAG's bid nears acceptance; new era to begin for the Irish flag

Aer Lingus suffered a slight fall in its 2Q2015 operating profit. Healthy revenue growth, driven by strong trading on the long-haul network more than offsetting a dip in short-haul revenue, was not enough to counterbalance cost increases. Currency movements inflated both revenue and cost, but the net impact was detrimental to the result.

Aer Lingus expects these currency effects to be less in 2H and says it is satisfied with forward bookings. It is prevented by stock exchange rules from issuing FY2015 profit guidance while under offer from IAG, but it says that it expects an improved operating performance for 3Q and for the full year.

Meanwhile, the IAG offer looks very close to being accepted by Aer Lingus. This could be its last set of results as an independent airline. As it continues to battle powerful local rival Ryanair, Aer Lingus can look forward to a new phase of its history as part of Europe's strongest legacy airline group.