Wednesday May 27, 09:04 AM
Germany's number two airline posts Q1 losses
FRANKFURT (AFP) - The second biggest German airline, Air Berlin (Xetra: AB1000 - news) , said Wednesday that first quarter results ended in a net loss that was steeper than in the same period a year earlier owing to slumping demand.
The carrier posted a net loss of 88.4 million euros (123.4 million dollars) in the first three months of the year, compared with a loss of almost 60 million in the first quarter of 2008.
Air Berlin lost a total of 75 million euros last year.
First-quarter operating results also showed a deeper loss of 87.3 million euros from 68.6 million in the year-earlier period.
A statement pointed to reduced demand and the fact that Easter, a peak travel period, had fallen in April in the second quarter this year as main factors for the increased first-quarter losses.
The number of passengers carried increased meanwhile by 6.2 percent on the year to 5.5 million, and sales edged up by 1.2 percent to 661 million euros, as the airline improved its average earnings per passenger.
Chief executive Joachim Hunold was quoted as saying that in particular, Air Berlin was "able to increase our charter-business revenue, especially due to improved capacity management on our long-haul flights."
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