The Belgian airline Brussels Airlines closed the first half of 2025 with an operating loss. adjusted EBIT was minus 46 million euros, representing a slight increase of two percent over the previous year. The company, which carried 4,2 million passengers in the first six months, attributes the negative result primarily to external influences.
According to the Nina ÖwerdieckAccording to Brussels Airlines' Chief Financial Officer, the nationwide demonstrations in Belgium were responsible for an estimated financial impact of approximately €12 million. Added to this were a revaluation of assets, unexpected maintenance costs, and disruptions to long-haul operations. In contrast, the European route network developed positively, reflecting strong demand. The airline nevertheless remains confident of achieving a positive overall result at the end of the year.
For the travel-intensive summer season, Brussels Airlines has increased its fleet to 50 aircraft, including additional aircraft of the types Airbus A320 and Airbus A330In addition, four Airbus A220 via the wet lease partner Air Baltic To ensure operations, more than 2025 new employees have been hired since January 300, including pilots, cabin crew, and ground staff. For the first time, the airline also employed specially trained summer students as cabin crew. At Brussels Airport, the baggage drop-off capacity was doubled to speed up processes.
Brussels Airlines sees itself encouraged by the challenges ahead to build a more resilient cost structure. This includes conscious resource allocation, cost discipline, and network optimization. The airline plans to take advantage of strong demand in the summer to offset the losses from the first half of the year and achieve its third consecutive profitable annual result.