As the global aviation sector regains momentum, Turkish Airlines presents exceptional half-year results, with $520 million in profit, placing it at the top of European companies emerging from the crisis.
The increase in the number of people vaccinated has allowed the relaxation of travel restrictions, which has led to a rapid increase in passenger demand. In a generally favorable context, the rise in geopolitical tensions, disruptions at airports across Europe and rising operating costs put a stop to strong growth in results for the majority of airlines.
In presenting its results for the 1st half of 2022, Turkish Airlines is visibly above these constraints: “Due to our operational resilience and our highly qualified workforce which has been preserved during the pandemic, in the first half of the year, Turkish Airlines carried 31 million passengers, reaching 88% of the 2019 level. During the same period, our group is the only air operator in the world to have exceeded its pre-pandemic capacity levels,” says Murat Şeker, Chief Financial Officer (Turkish Airlines Turkey).
Turkish Airlines : Transport capacity increased by 22% compared to 2019
He refers to data published by IATA which indicates that the global capacity of international passengers reached 65% of the 2019 level in June 2022, and that of European passengers reached 81% of the 2019 level. For its part Turkish Airlines increased its transport capacity by 22% compared to 2019.
This is what allowed it to rank first among the carriers of the European network in terms of flights according to the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol).
Thanks to a strategic shift at the start of the pandemic, Turkish Airlines gained market share with its cargo operations throughout the pandemic period. “Turkish Cargo has transported 335 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine to 61 countries”, insists the financial director who continues. “Especially given the low number of carriers serving Africa, Turkish Cargo has undertaken an important mission to ensure that vaccines remain accessible to people living on this continent. The company has maintained its strong growth in the freight market over the past decade and as a result freight revenues increased by 16% in the first half of 2022 compared to the same period of the previous year “.
Last June, according to data published by World Air Cargo Data (WACD), Turkish Cargo ranked 4th in the world in terms of sales tonnage. In February 2022, Turkish Cargo moved cargo operations to its new hub, Smartist, equipped with smart technology, which allows it to keep its lead among air cargo carriers in the world.
This double half-year performance, in terms of passenger and freight transport, made it possible to reach a turnover of 4.5 billion dollars, up nearly 43% over the same pre-Covid period of 2019: its passenger traffic increased by almost 12% and the cargo business literally exploded to exceed one billion dollars, up 171%.
In the first half of the year, Turkish Airlines made an operating profit of $520 million and a net profit of $576 million.
For the rest of the operations, Turkish Airlines presents itself as a “hybrid” company, whose traditionally European vocation is extended by the role of hub that Istanbul now plays in the direction of the Gulf towards Abu Dhabi, Doha and Dubai.
The company announces an increase in its passenger capacity of 10 to 20% in the 3rd quarter, and an additional 5 to 15% in the 4th quarter. The network should have 14 additional short-term stops, including long-haul routes such as Denver and Detroit, new routes with Spain such as La Coruña, and Africa such as Port Sudan.
It is backed up in its forecasts of even more positive results by controlling its operating costs, which should decrease by a few %, with the exception of fuel, whose supplies have also been secured for the coming months.
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