(Alliance News) - Wizz Air Holdings PLC on Thursday said revenue grew by double-digits in the third quarter of its financial year, but reported that it swung to a loss on higher costs relating to the ongoing Middle East conflict.
The Budapest-based budget airline said revenue jumped 17% to EUR1.06 billion from EUR911.7 million the year before. This was linked to a 22% boost in the number of passengers carried to 15.1 million, from 12.4 million a year ago.
In addition, load factor improved to 87.6% in the quarter from 87.3% the year before.
However, Wizz Air swung to a pretax loss of EUR118.4 million from a EUR36.4 million profit the previous year, as total operating expenses surged 17% to EUR1.25 billion from EUR1.07 billion a year ago. Operating loss widened to EUR180.4 million from EUR155.5 million.
"Wizz Air continued to deliver industry-leading capacity growth during the third quarter, ahead of the anticipated grounding of aircraft in Q4 as geared turbofan engines are removed for mandatory inspections. We have worked hard to adjust the schedule in line with updated capacity projections, focusing on seasonality and markets with the greatest potential to deliver stronger yields and optimal operational performance," said Chief Executive Officer Jozsef Varadi.
Early fourth-quarter trading has been positive, Varadi added, with selling load factors trending at a similar level to last year, while unit revenues have risen annually.
After cancelling around 6% of its planned capacity in the third quarter due to the Israel crisis, it plans to restart operations into Israel from the beginning of March.
Shares in Wizz Air fell 5.5% to 1,918.79 pence each in London on Thursday morning.
By Sabrina Penty, Alliance News reporter
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