Air Arabia Records Dhs75m Q1 Net Profit, Up 27%

Sharjah-based low-cost carrier Air Arabia announced that it made a net profit of Dhs75 million in three months ending March 31, 2014.

The profit represent a 27 per cent increase from last year’s figures where the airline recorded Dhs59 million gains.

The airline also posted a turnover of Dhs827 million in the first quarter of this year, an increase of 14.5 per cent compared to Dhs722 million in the same period of the previous year.

It received 1,630,000 passengers in the first quarter of 2014, a 12 per cent increase from last year’s 1,450,000 figures. Average seat load factor reached 81.5 per cent during the first three months of 2014, it said.

“Our route, fleet and hub expansion strategy continues to deliver profitability while bringing ever greater connectivity and flexibility to people across the Middle East and North Africa,” said Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Al Thani, chairman of Air Arabia.

The company recently added three new destinations to its fleet, which include Cairo, Antalya, and Shymkent. Extra frequencies to existing routes were also implemented, including an additional daily service between Sharjah and Doha.

The low cost carrier was also appointed as the designated carrier of Ras Al Khaimah in February 2014, following the closure of RAK Airways. It began operations from RAK International Airport on May 6, 2014, offering direct services to eight routes including Jeddah in Saudi, Cairo in Egypt, Muscat in Oman, Islamabad, Lahore and Peshawar in Pakistan, Dhaka in Bangladesh and Calicut in India.