As travel resumes, Emirates Airlines reduces its yearly loss to $1.1 billion

Dubai’s Emirates airline reported a $1.1 billion yearly loss on Friday, a significant improvement from the $5.5 billion deficit the previous year, as countries eased pandemic-related restrictions, boosting demand for international travel.

The airline, which solely conducts foreign flights, recorded a 91 percent increase in revenue to $16.1 billion for the fiscal year ending March 31, with passenger numbers tripling to 19.6 million.

‘Business recovery accelerated, particularly in the second half of the year,’ stated Chairman and CEO Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum in a statement.

The state-owned airline reported that it filled 58.6 percent of tickets flown, up from 44.3 percent a year before, and that the number of destinations served climbed from 120 at the start of the fiscal year to more than 140 as of March 31.

It was the airline’s second consecutive annual deficit and only the fourth in its nearly 40-year history of operations.

Emirates expects to return to profitability this fiscal year, and Chairman Sheikh Ahmed stated on Friday that the Emirates Group, which includes the airline, will as well.

‘This year, we focused on restoring our operations quickly and safely whenever pandemic-related limitations were lifted across our markets,’ Sheikh Ahmed said, adding that the Group was closely monitoring the impact of high fuel prices and inflation.

While Emirates was managing high fuel prices and inflation, Chief Operating Officer Adel Al Redha cautioned last week that the current oil price was not sustainable for airlines.

He predicted that air tickets would rise, while airlines would have to absorb some expenses to avoid stifling the recovery in travel.

Emirates Group recorded a $1 billion loss for the fiscal year, despite revenue increasing by 86% to $18.1 billion. dnata, the Group’s worldwide airport and travel services division, profited $30 million.

Sheikh Ahmed said this week that he anticipated the airline would be able to begin repaying the 15 billion dirhams ($4.1 billion) it got from the Dubai government during the pandemic after the current fiscal year.

Qatar Airways, whose fiscal year also concluded on March 31, has yet to release its annual results.