International Airlines Group reported 9M 2026 revenue of €25,808m, up from €25,234m in 9M 2025, a rise of about 2.3pc. The 9M operating-profit bridge shows passenger revenue up €1,162m, cargo down €7m and other revenue up €67m. Aer Lingus revenue is not separately disclosed in the presentation, and no airline-level revenue figure is given.
- On fuel, IAG’s Q3 2026 unit fuel cost rose 30.7pc year on year, driven by higher commodity prices linked to the Middle East conflict and partly mitigated by hedging. Fuel costs were a €1,241m headwind in the 9M profit bridge, and FY26 fuel cost is expected at about €8.9bn based on the forward jet curve and foreign exchange at 3 November 2026. Aer Lingus fuel cost and hedging are not separately disclosed.
- Group 9M operating margin fell to 13.5pc from 15.6pc. Aer Lingus posted a 9M operating margin of 5.5pc, the lowest among the disclosed airline and business margins, compared with British Airways at 12.8pc, Iberia excluding LEVEL at 15.8pc, Vueling at 11.7pc and IAG Loyalty at 19.1pc. Aer Lingus was therefore 8.0 percentage points below the group margin and below BA, Iberia and Vueling.
- On non-fuel costs, IAG’s Q3 2026 total non-fuel unit cost rose 3.4pc year on year, with employee costs up 3.0pc, supplier costs up 2.9pc and ownership costs up 6.8pc. Total unit cost was up 10.5pc, with fuel the main additional driver. FY26 non-fuel unit cost is now expected to rise by about 1pc, reflecting disruption costs and lower capacity. Aer Lingus non-fuel unit cost is not separately disclosed.
- IAG’s 9M adjusted EPS before exceptional items fell to 50.4c from 55.5c in 9M 2025, reflecting lower profit, while reported profit after tax fell to €2,264m from €2,703m. No separate EPS is disclosed for Aer Lingus.
- The group’s 9M operating profit fell from €3,931m in 9M25 to €3,483m in 9M26, down €448m or 11.4pc. The drivers were passenger revenue up €1,162m, cargo down €7m, other revenue up €67m, non-fuel costs down €347m, fuel costs down €1,241m and FX down €82m. By business, BA was down €190m, Iberia excluding LEVEL down €96m, Vueling down €64m, Aer Lingus down €142m, IAG Loyalty up €62m and Other down €18m. Aer Lingus therefore contributed a €142m negative year-on-year swing to group operating profit.
- IAG’s fuel hedge ratios are 71pc for Q4 2026, 61pc for Q1 2027, 50pc for Q2 2027, 42pc for Q3 2027, 34pc for Q4 2027 and 28pc for Q1 2028. The effective blended price after fuel and FX hedging is $1,145/mt in Q4 2026 and $1,105/mt in Q1 2027. Aer Lingus hedging is not separately disclosed.
- On capacity, IAG now expects FY26 capacity to be slightly down versus FY2025, with Q4 2026 down 1pc. Aer Lingus expects FY26 ASKs to be flat or unchanged versus FY2025 having reduced the final quarter by 6pc, but Q4 2026 capacity is down 6pc. Among the other airlines, BA is down 1pc for both FY26 and Q4, Iberia is up 3pc for FY26 and up 5pc for Q4, Vueling is down 3pc for FY26 and down 8pc for Q4, and LEVEL is down 10pc for FY26 and down 28pc for Q4.
- Bottom line: group revenue rose modestly, but profit fell on a large fuel headwind and higher non-fuel costs, compressing margins. Aer Lingus is the weakest disclosed airline margin at 5.5pc, with a €142m negative profit-bridge contribution, FY capacity flat but Q4 cut by 6pc.
