The era of cheap flights could soon come to an end after the UK voted to leave the EU.

Chief executive of easyJet Dame Carolyn McCall DBE has stressed that two-thirds of the airline’s flights cross central European airspace and that any disruption to this would have a knock-on effect.

“Disruption adds cost, which ultimately means higher fares for passengers,” she said at the launch of Airlines for Europe, a new association comprising the five largest airline groups in Europe.

She admitted that while nothing would change overnight, much would depend on any new agreements that Britain reach with other EU member states.

“The aviation industry knows how to overcome challenges and deal with change, and that is exactly what we will do,” Dame McCall added.

Meanwhile, Ryanair has scrapped plans to introduce new aircraft for UK routes and will instead focus on European operations, following the outcome of Britain’s EU Referendum.

The Irish budget airline also anticipates “additional economic and consumer uncertainty this summer”, resulting in a revenue slump of around five per cent in the second half of 2016, compared to the same period last year.