Swiss records third quarter profit

Airline Industry Information, Nov 16, 2004

AIRLINE INDUSTRY INFORMATION-(C)1997-2004 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

Swiss International Air Lines has announced that it made a profit of CHF20m before interest and tax in the third quarter of 2004 against a loss of CHF62m in the same period in 2003.

The result beat analysts' predictions but a spokesperson for the airline said that the net profit of CHF16m was below the airline's expectations as unachieved savings and high fuel costs had cut into earnings, and that the airline still faced a challenging future.

Swiss was formed from Swissair and regional carrier Crossair. Despite an immediate cull of staff and a reorganisation of its route network to cut costs it predicted in June 2004 that it would not break even in 2004. Third quarter results were pulled down by CHF35m due to an extra CHF64m added to the airline's fuel bill, reports Reuters.

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