Dubai: Three months into a restructuring strategy, Gulf Air said on Tuesday it reduced its overall losses by approximately 50 per cent in the first quarter of the 2013 over the same period a year ago.
“This was realised principally through a 21 per cent fall in year-on-year expenditure driven by reductions in aircraft leasing fees, flight-related charges and staff expenses in addition to the closure of loss-making routes,” Bahrain’s flag carrier said in a statement.
It added that passenger yield was 21 per cent higher in the period compared to the first quarter of 2012. “The increase coincides with the successful realignment of the airline’s network and fleet, a stronger traffic demand in the region and significantly higher sales in Bahrain,” said Gulf Air, which currently operates an all Airbus fleet of 26 wide- and narrow-body aircraft.
In line with the airline’s restructuring plan, the airline said it performed 11 per cent better than forecast in the first three months of the year, adding that this positive variance was largely due to a “top-line revenue performance”.
The company, however, did not divulge any profit or revenue numbers for the quarter.
The airline’s cargo unit, Gulf Air Falcon Cargo, meanwhile, recorded a three per cent jump in revenue in the quarter.
