Montreal-based Air Transat said it posted its first profitable month in two years this summer, and that it expects to match pre-pandemic traffic levels this coming winter.
Transat A.T. today (September 8) released its third quarter financial results. The airline and travel company posted revenues of $4508.3 million
and reported an adjusted operating loss of $57.8 million.
“The recovery emerging at the end of the last quarter has been confirmed in recent months. With our prudent planning and our teams’ exceptionally high quality execution, we were able to deploy virtually all of our programs, with continuously improving load factors,” said Annick Guérard, President and Chief Executive Officer of Transat.
“We are on track for a winter season that promises to match pre-pandemic levels. The pace of sales is currently very comparable to 2019. Although the quarterly results are still affected by the costs of resuming operations, July was our first profitable month in more than two years, setting the stage for improved results. The strong pricing this quarter also partially absorbed the increase in fuel costs, the adverse effect of which is likely to persist for some time.”
“Our current cash position, combined with new financing obtained during the quarter, gives us the required flexibility for the future. We also continued to implement our strategic plan during the quarter, particularly with respect to the fleet, with the receipt of two new A321LRs and the order of four A321XLRs. These new aircraft will bring us all the advantages of the LR, including cost and environmental benefits, with an even longer range.”
Compared with 2021 (a quarter with virtually no operations), the Corporation’s revenues increased by $495.8 million for the quarter ended July 31, 2022. Compared with 2019, quarterly revenues were down $190.6 million or 27%.
Capacity offered in the third quarter of this year was 82% of that deployed in 2019 across all programs.
INTERNATIONAL AIR GROUP ALSO REPORTS STRONG RECOVERY
The International Air Transport Association says air traffic around the world in July was up 58.8% compared to July of last year. Across the globe, traffic is now at 74.6% of pre-crisis levels, IATA said.
That may not sound like a huge number, but remember that traffic between Asia and other parts of the world is still at a relative standstill. Once China Japan, Hong Kong and other destinations open more fully, that number should start to increase rapidly.
