British Airways’ parent IAG has reported a 39% year-on-year rise in quarterly operating profit to $1.8 billion.

BA’s profit was up 50% to £617 million for the three months to the end of September following a 25% rise in capacity.

The airline said that in addition to increasing frequencies and putting larger aircraft on some routes, it had rebuilt its Asia network.

BA has also recently announced the resumption of flights to Abu Dhabi in 2024.

It said it expected a ‘more resilient performance’ over the winter.

IAG said capacity for the full year for the group, which also includes Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling, would be just 4% lower than pre-pandemic