News
Singapore Airlines group returns to profit
February 25th 2022
Singapore Airlines (SIA) swung back to the black in the three months to December 31, posting a net profit of S$85 million (US$62 .8 million) for the quarter, up from a net loss of S$142 million in the same three months in 2020. Read More » Revenue rose 117.1%, to S$2.3 billion, SIA said in a regulatory filing to the Singapore Exchange. The Singapore Airlines and Scoot flying businesses said the result was achieved "amid a significant step-up in air travel to and through Singapore in the October- December 2021 period as well as continued robust demand and strong yields in the cargo market". Commencement of Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) flights helped unlock pent-up demand, the airline group said. It noted the 1.1 million passengers the group flew in the quarter was five times higher than in the same months in 2020 and double the total in the three months to September 30, 2021.
SIA said passenger capacity will reach 51% of pre-COVID-19 levels next month based on current published schedules. The group expects to be flying to 70% of the destinations it served before the pandemic by March 31. "Singapore’s VTL arrangements have been a game changer for the SIA Group, facilitating quarantine-free mass travel for the first time since the pandemic began," SIA said. "While demand should continue to recover, especially on VTL services, passenger traffic is likely to moderate in the fourth quarter after the year-end holiday season."
