(MENAFN - Arab Times) In a webcast attended by local and international analysts, Jazeera Airways Group announced on Tuesday a record net profit of KD7.6 million for Q3 2012, making the quarter the company's best quarter in history and its ninth straight quarter of profitability since Q3 2010.
Q3' 2012 Financial Highlights:
* Q3'12 Operating revenue: KD20.4 million, up 5.9% from Q3'11's KD19.3 million
* Q3'12 Operating profit: KD8.8 million, up 17.9% from Q3'11's KD7.5 million
* Q3'12 Net profit: KD7.6 million, up 24.6% from Q3'11's KD6.1 million
* Q3'12 Average yield: up 9.5% from Q3'11
9M' 2012 Financial Highlights:
* 9M'12 Operating revenue: KD48.7 million, up 9.3% from 9M'11's KD44.5 million
* 9M'12 Operating profit: KD15.2 million, up 26.3% from 9M'11's KD12.1 million
* 9M'12 Net profit: KD11.4 million, up 23.6% from 9M'11's KD9.2 million
* 9M'12 Average yield: up 16% from 9M'11
* Cash reserves increased to KD29 million, exceeding equity
Jazeera Airways Group Chairman Marwan Boodai said, "We just closed our best quarter ever on the heels of eight straight quarters of profitability driven by a dynamic management and an agile business model. Two years ago we were a turn-around story, last year we were a sustainable profit story, and today Jazeera Airways is clearly a profit-growth story".
The results reflect the ongoing success of the Group's Strategic Master Plan (STAMP). STAMP is a business plan for the years 2012 to 2014 and follows the success of the Group's Turn-Around Plan (TAP) that brought the company back to profitability and was in effect from Q2 2010 to end of 2011.
The Group's forecasts for the rest of the year remain unchanged, and expects to close the year with a "mild" fourth quarter.
Operationally, Jazeera Airways' on-time performance (OTP) for the third quarter was 96%, as measured by the US-based global OTP tracker FlightStats, which also placed the airline among the top ten on-time performers worldwide for the same period. Previously, FlightStats had also ranked Jazeera Airways as the leading airline in OTP in the Middle East in Q1 and Q2 of 2012, all of 2011 as well.
Established in 2005, Jazeera Airways Group is a Kuwait Stock Exchange-listed company with a fleet of 12 fully-owned Airbus A320s, distributed between its airline business, Jazeera Airways, and its fully-owned leasing-arm Sahaab Aircraft Leasing. Sahaab has assets placed with Virgin America, SriLankan Airlines, and Jazeera Airways.
The airline operates a two-class cabin comprising of a Business Class and an Economy Class. Jazeera Airways' Business Class offering includes a separate cabin for passengers, exclusive check-in counters, business lounge access at airports, in-flight la carte menu, and 60 kilograms in free baggage allowance. The airline's Economy Class offers travelers free baggage allowance of 40 kilograms, free on-board meals with a changing menu every month, and year-round value fares.
Jazeera Airways is based in Kuwait and operates a network comprising high-demand business, leisure, family, and weekend destinations such as Dubai, Bahrain, Beirut, Alexandria, Amman, Damascus, Istanbul, Sharm El Sheikh, Assuit, Luxor, Mashhad, Sohag, Jeddah, Riyadh, Cairo and Al Najaf.
Jazeera Airways is an IATA-member airline and operates one of the youngest Airbus A320 fleets across the Middle East.
