British Airways owner IAG sees return to profit from Q2 over travel rebound

British Airways owner IAG SA said it should turn profitable from the second quarter, joining other European carriers in predicting a travel rebound in coming months.

While IAG, which also owns Spain’s Iberia and Aer Lingus of Ireland, sees a “significant” loss this quarter, bookings are now running at 85% of pre-pandemic levels as concerns about the omicron variant of Covid-19 fades, it said in a statement Friday.

“Demand slowed down for very near-term trips following the emergence of omicron in late November,” Chief Executive Officer Luis Gallego said. “However, bookings have remained strong for Easter and summer 2022 having picked up