British no-frills airline EasyJet announced today it has applied for an air operator certificate from the European Union to continue flying throughout the bloc after Brexit.
The carrier said in a statement that it has begun a formal procedure to obtain an air operator certificate (AOC) to keep the status quo after Britain's vote to quit the EU cast doubts over airline routes.
"EasyJet is lobbying the UK government and the EU to ensure the continuation of a fully liberal and deregulated aviation market within the UK and Europe," it said in a statement.
"This would mean that EasyJet and all European airlines can continue to operate as they do today.
"As part of EasyJet's contingency planning before the referendum we had informal discussions with a number of European aviation regulators about the establishment of an AOC in an European country to enable easyJet to fly across Europe as we do today.
"EasyJet has now started a formal process to acquire an AOC," it added.
The low-cost carrier added that it does not need to make any other operational or structural changes until the outcome of Britain's EU exit negotiations becomes clear.
EasyJet stressed that it had no plans to move from Luton, which lies north of the British capital and where the airline has been based for two decades.
Since the June 23 referendum, both EasyJet and British Airways owner IAG have issued profit-warnings, as the pound dives against the euro on financial markets.
EasyJet said Monday that the surprise vote would create uncertainty in the economy and among consumers, impacting its second-half performance that ends in September.
Airlines are among the industries in Britain, in addition to banks, to have been left especially exposed by the shock Brexit vote.
Ireland's no-frills airline Ryanair had revealed earlier this week that it will put the brakes on new UK connections for the coming months given the uncertainty caused by the referendum.
"I don't think we'll open up many new lines in the UK for the next twelve or eighteen months, until this current uncertainty is removed," chief executive Michael O'Leary told AFP in Brussels on Tuesday.
Ryanair earns more than a quarter of its sales in Britain and is particularly at risk to turbulence from the nation's EU exit. Based in eurozone-member Ireland, Ryanair would however remain unaffected by the tumbling pound.
