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War has broken out — yet again — in the boardroom of easyJet as founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou today criticised chief executive Andy Harrison just hours after Harrison had insisted there is no crisis at the budget airline.
EasyJet today reported a deep dive into the red, racking up losses over the winter of £129 million — 160% worse than last year.
Harrison excused the losses as a hangover of last year's forward-buying of this year's jet fuel needs at more than $100 a barrel.
He said yields — or income per passenger — have risen taking revenues in the half year to 31 March up 15% at £1 billion.
Underlying profit margins he said, have improved as businessmen and wealthier holidaymakers trade down to fly easyJet.
And he insisted that the recent departures of chairman Sir Colin Chandler, finance director Jeff Carr and two other senior executives are not linked to a row going back to last autumn when Haji-Ioannou who is also a non-executive director of the airline, refused to sign off the company accounts because of Harrison's growth strategy.
“This is not an airline in crisis,” said Harrison, who said that substantial profits in the summer and cutting planned growth to 2% would put easyJet back in the black.
However, in a statement, a spokesman for Stelios said: “Stelios remains of the view that easyJet's current financial performance and the outlook for the European economy requires a significantly more conservative approach to the biggest single issue facing the company, namely the Airbus order for an additional 91 aircraft.
“The company currently plans to buy too many new aircraft from Airbus too soon and the passenger numbers are not keeping up with the aircraft numbers.
“Stelios continues to advocate that the company should continue to postpone certain deliveries. In simple terms, easyJet has too many aircraft.”
Shares in easyJet fell 12 ½p to 319 ¾p.
