SpiceJet posts record profit as Jet downfall drives demand
09 Aug 2019
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No-frills carrier SpiceJet Ltd has posted a standalone net profit (excluding earnings of non-core units) of Rs262 crore in the three months ended 30 June 2019, its biggest ever quarterly profit, as it flew more passengers and raised fares in the wake of the collapse of top carrier Jet Airways.
SpiceJet had reported a quarterly loss of Rs38 crore during the year-ago quarter.
Although domestic air traffic growth has been slowing in recent months on the back of a sagging economy, the grounding of Jet Airways came as a blessing in disguise for SpiceJet and rival carrier IndiGo.
SpiceJet said passenger fares rose 11 per cent during the three months ended 30 June 2019, a quarter in which it cancelled some flights due to the grounding of Boeing 737 MAX after Ethiopian Airlines` deadly crash in March.
"The results would have been vastly better but for the painful grounding of the MAX aircraft," chairman and managing director Ajay Singh said in a statement.
SpiceJet added 32 aircraft between April and June, after Jet was forced to stop operations in April.
Domestic air traffic growth has been slowing in recent months in a flagging economy, but the downfall of Jet Airways, once the country`s largest private carrier, this year has helped SpiceJet and market leader IndiGo attract more customers, raise fares and add routes.
