AIR Arabia’s net profit for the first half 2013 stood at Dh134 million, an increase of 17 per cent compared to Dh115 million ($31.31 million) for the first six months of last year, the company announced. During the first half of 2013, it registered a turnover of Dh1.5 billion ($408.41 million), up 19 per cent from Dh1.2 billion ($326.72 million) for the first half of 2012.
The UAE airline’s profits exceeded analysts’ forecast and registered Dh76 million ($20.69 million), an increase of 15 per cent compared to Dh66 million ($17.96 million) for the second quarter of 2012. Turnover for the second quarter of 2013 rose by 17 per cent to Dh797 million ($217 million), compared to Dh681 million ($185.4 million) for the second quarter of last year.
The airline served over three million passengers during the first half of 2013; a 16 per cent increase compared 2.6 million passengers during the same period last year. Air Arabia’s average seat load factor – or passengers carried as a percentage of available seats – for the first six month of 2013 stood at a staggering 82 per cent.
Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Al Thani, chairman of Air Arabia, says: “The airline’s commercial and operational strength have allowed it to further invest in its own growth, carry more people and register sustained and strong performance. We will continue to focus on our business expansion strategy which will enable us to launch new services and enter new geographies in the coming six months, while continuously offering our customers the best value for money deals.”
In the first half of 2013, Air Arabia added five new routes from Sharjah, bringing the total route network to serve 86 destinations from three operating hubs – UAE, Morocco and Egypt. These new destinations include: Sialkot in Pakistan; Baghdad in Iraq; Abha and Ha’il in Saudi Arabia; and Yerevan in Armenia. The first half of 2013 also saw the airline increasing frequency of flights to Beirut in Lebanon, Salalah in Oman, and Dhaka in Bangladesh.
The airline has taken delivery of three aircraft from Airbus this year, including the region’s first Airbus Sharklet equipped A320 aircraft, bringing its total operational fleet to 33 aircraft. The low-cost pioneer expects to receive another four aircraft from Airbus by the end of 2013.
As further testament to its successful business model, Air Arabia has been awarded “Best Low-Cost Airline, Middle East” at the Skytrax World Airline Awards 2013 at the recent Paris Air Show. The award recognises the airline’s commitment to providing the best quality, low cost travel for airline passengers in the region.