Business travel volume for International Airlines Group in the third quarter reached 64% of 2019 levels while business travel revenue was 74% of pre-pandemic numbers, according to CEO Luis Gallego, speaking on a third-quarter earnings call. IAG owns British Airways, Iberia, Vueling and Aer Lingus.

In the second quarter, business travel volume was 60% of 2019 levels, and volume was at 69%. Corporate demand continues to recover more slowly, particularly at British Airways, according to Gallego, who noted that business travel recovery correlates with corporate return-to-office strategies.

There has been a difference in the rate of recovery of different types of business trips and regions, said Gallego. For example, he said, long-haul business trips have recovered faster than short-haul.

Gallego also said that business travel recovery has been inconsistent among IAG airlines. While British Airways’ third-quarter business travel volume reached 64% of 2019 levels and revenue 75%, Iberia was at 86% and 96%, respectively, in the third quarter. Aer Lingus was at 60% business travel volume recovery and 72% revenue compared with 2019. Gallego said the company was pleased that business travel volume for British Airways has seen a significant increase since the end of July.

IAG reported more than $9.01 billion in third-quarter revenue, up about 18% year over year. Passenger revenue increased 20.5% to $8.13 billion. IAG reported a third-quarter operating profit of about $1.3 billion, up from $901 million in the second quarter of 2022.