EasyJet, IAG CEOs Say Market Overreacted to Brexit
Skift Take
Yes, Brexit is a big deal politically in the United Kingdom. But the decision should not affect the nation's airlines much.
Little has changed for the UK's airlines since the country signaled in June it would leave the European Union, and carriers do not expect to markedly alter their models even when the UK withdraws, the CEOs of EasyJet and International Airlines Group said Thursday in London.
"It shouldn't be affecting the business at all, and it isn't," EasyJet CEO Carolyn McCall said in a panel discussion at the World Low Cost Airlines Congress. "It definitely affected some [short-term] decisions because it made holidays more expensive, but from a longer view, nothing has changed."
For airlines, the most notable difference has been the devaluation of the British pound, which, though it has recovered recently, has still lost significant value against the U.S. dollar and Euro. This summer, that made France, Italy and Spain vacations more expensive for Britons, though over the long term, airlines do
