British no-frills airline EasyJet said Thursday that its losses deepened in the six months to end-March after the Middle East war sent jet fuel prices soaring.

Easyjet has played down fears that a jet fuel crisis caused by the Middle East will rip through its low-cost model.

The group reported a half-year pre-tax loss of £552 million, which is in line with the range it gave in a trading update in April.