Larnaca facility to support easyJet fleet under new long-term deal

Aircraft maintenance firm Bird Aviation announced on Wednesday that it has signed a long-term agreement with low-cost airline easyJet to provide scheduled aircraft maintenance services at its facilities in Larnaca, strengthening Cyprus’ position as a regional aviation maintenance hub.

The agreement has an initial duration of seven years, with an option to extend it by a further three years, the company stated.

According to the announcement, the contract covers two maintenance lines dedicated to scheduled heavy maintenance checks for easyJet’s Airbus A320 family aircraft, with all work to be carried out at Bird Aviation’s facilities in Cyprus.

The company said the agreement builds on the long-standing relationship between Bird Aviation and easyJet and establishes a stable framework for the continued provision of heavy maintenance services.

It added that the deal will further reinforce the role of Bird Aviation’s Larnaca facilities in supporting easyJet’s fleet maintenance programme over the coming years.

The announcement comes as easyJet faces a more challenging financial environment despite reporting improving booking trends during the peak summer travel season.

The airline recently revealed that its pre-tax profit fell by 70 per cent during the April to June quarter, dropping to £85 million from £286 million a year earlier.

EasyJet attributed the decline largely to fuel costs rising by £105 million, after the outbreak of hostilities in the Middle East in late February drove energy prices sharply higher.

The airline also said passengers have increasingly delayed making travel bookings until shortly before departure, affecting revenue patterns.

Despite this trend, easyJet said bookings had begun to improve, although it warned that the outlook for the remainder of its financial year depends on remaining bookings and fuel prices, which it described as continuing to be volatile.

The company is also at the centre of a takeover battle between two US investment firms.

EasyJet’s board initially accepted a £5.5 billion offer from Castlelake before recommending a higher £5.7 billion bid from Apollo Global Management, equivalent to more than £7 per share.

However, the proposed acquisition could still face scrutiny from European Union regulators over airline ownership rules.

EasyJet’s rival Ryanair has also reported weaker financial performance, announcing that profits fell 34 per cent to €538 million in the three months to the end of June after jet fuel prices doubled during the Iran conflict.

The Irish carrier said the higher fuel costs particularly affected the 20 per cent of its fuel requirements that had not been hedged against price fluctuations.

Even so, Ryanair said consumer confidence had strengthened during the peak summer holiday period.

“Pricing has been attractive, driving strong late booking demand for our flights and holidays,” said easyJet chief executive Kenton Jarvis.

“Our recent experience is that bookings become strong in the month of departure,” Jarvis said.

“So my expectation is that as we move through August, bookings will be above where they were at this time last year,” he added.