Turkish Airlines flies high with 1.1 bln lira net profit

ISTANBUL

A Turkish Airlines plane prepares to take off at Ataturk International Airport in Istanbul November 30, 2012. REUTERS/Osman Orsal

Turkey’s national carrier, Turkish Airlines (THY), posted a net profit worth 1.13 billion Turkish Liras last year thanks to an increase in passenger numbers and occupancy rate, as the company has ordered 117 planes from the European aircraft manufacturer Airbus, according to a press release on March 15.

THY’s sales volume reached 14.9 billion liras last year, a 26 percent increase from a year earlier, and its real operating profit jumped to 1.05 million liras with a 192 percent increase, as its net profit increased from 19 million liras to 1.133 billion liras – 265 million liras in the last quarter of the last year – in the same period, the statement said. Its net profit margin rose from 0.2 percent in 2011 to 7.6 percent last year, as its operating profit margin increased from 1 percent to 10.8 percent during this period. THY’s profit was much lower in 2011 due to its expenses for restructuration.

“We were honored as the ‘Best Airline Europe’ by the Skytrax World Aviation Awards last year, and we were in 2011 as well,” said THY CEO Hamdi Topçu, adding that the company had also been named “Best Airline Southern Europe” and “World’s Best Premium Economy Class Airline Seat.”

82 planes certain

THY has decided to purchase 117 planes from Airbus in a period when European carriers face financial difficulties that could even cause bankruptcies. Some 82 of the orders have been finalized and 35 of them are optional, with deliveries scheduled between 2015 and 2020. The company’s fleet size reached 202 planes last year, and it will raise it to 375 by 2020 with these new orders.

The national carrier’s passenger number increased to 39 million with a 20 percent increase last year from a year earlier, as its passenger occupancy rate reached 77.7 percent. It ranked third among the members of the Association of European Airlines (AEA) in terms of number of passengers. However, its passenger number jumped to 6.4 million, a 26 percent increase, in the period of January-February 2013 from the same period last year. The passenger number showed a 15 percent increase in domestic lines and 35 percent in international lines.

The international destination number also rose to 181 with 32 new destinations launched last year, bringing the number of destination countries to 96. Its total flight points, including domestic lines, increased to 217 last year, and THY became the airline flying to the highest number of countries.