Irish carrier Aer Lingus has said that operating profits are likely to be up to 20% lower than the previous year following a strike last month by cabin crew and the threat of future walk outs which hurt bookings.

In a statement, the airline said: “Aer Lingus welcomes the indication given last night by Impact, following an intervention by the Labour Court yesterday, to defer the further two days of strike action that had been called for 16 and 18 June 2014. This deferral is to allow consideration of an interim recommendation to be issued by the Labour Court today.

“However, the threat of this strike has caused significant damage to Aer Lingus' trading and forward bookings for several months into the future. This has been particularly noticeable in recent days following increased media coverage and commentary. In this context, and assuming that no further strikes are threatened, Aer Lingus now expects that its 2014 operating profits (before net exceptional items) will be 10% to 20% lower than last year. The outcome will depend in part on the speed with which we can win back customer confidence.

“Aer Lingus continues to engage with Impact under the auspices of the Labour Court to resolve this matter and further announcements will be made as appropriate.