Etihad Airways is confident it will deliver a profit for the second successive year in 2012, as the airline’s growing network of partnerships plays an increasingly important role.
The third quarter saw revenue rise 19% year on year to US$1.3 billion. Passenger numbers jumped 23% to 2.79 million with the airline predicting it would pass the 10 million mark by the end of the year.
It also reported its “best ever quarterly performance” for load factor which hit 81.2%.
President and chief executive James Hogan said all key indicators were pointing to a “strong performance” with the rise in revenues outperforming capacity increases.
“We remain confident of delivering full-year profitability based on current market conditions,” he said.
“We are particularly pleased with the contribution from our codeshare and equity partners. This component of our strategy is delivering a strong and growing revenue stream, complementing our own double-digit growth.”
Codeshare and partner revenues, up 51% to US$182 million, delivered a significant boost to passenger revenues, Etihad revealed, accounting for 18% of total passenger revenue for the quarter. It currently has 38 partners, yielding a network of 315 destinations.
Codeshare revenues from the carrier’s tie-up with Virgin Australia climbed 16% year on year, while equity partners Airberlin and Air Seychelles also performed well.
Meanwhile, at an aviation conference in Abu Dhabi, Hogan hinted further equity investments could be on the cards if the “right opportunity” presented itself.
