easyJet plans move after Brexit vote

easyJet is making plans to relocate from the UK to another European Union country in order to keep flying to EU destinations after Brexit.

The budget airline, which issued a profit warning last week following the referendum result, has held informal discussions with several countries about moving its legal headquarters.

easyJet currently has an air operator's certificate in the UK and another in Switzerland. Britain leaving the EU could make it more difficult for British airlines to operate European routes, unless special arrangements can be negotiated during the Brexit negotiations, similar to those in place for Norway and Switzerland.

Obtaining a certificate in another European Union country would allow the airline to keep its unlimited access to European airspace and its existing network of routes across the continent.

The airline said in a statement: " easyJet has been preparing for this eventuality in the lead up to the referendum vote and has been working on a number of options that will allow it to continue flying in all of its markets."

easyJet would continue to employ staff in Luton, its home for the past 20 years, but the UK operation would instead become a subsidiary of a foreign company.

The budget airline has lost about a third of its stock market valuation in the week following the shock Brexit referendum result.
Earlier this year, easyJet chief executive Carolyn McCall warned that Brexit could force air fares up and Britain could return to the 1990s when "few people flew" and state-owned airlines enjoyed monopolies.