Air Arabia (PJSC), the first and largest low cost carrier (LCC) in the Middle East and North Africa, today announced its financial and operational results for the first half of this year ending June 30, 2020 as the global aviation industry continues to battle the impact of COVID-19.
Air Arabia registered a net loss of AED 169 million for the first half ending June 30, 2020, a direct result of second quarter performance being heavily impacted by COVID-19 and the subsequent cancellation of scheduled flight operations. The company’s turnover for the first six months of 2020 registered AED 1.021 billion, a drop of 53 per cent compared to AED 2.173 billion in the corresponding period last year. Air Arabia served a total 2.48 million passengers from all its four hubs in the first half of 2020, a drop of 57 per cent compared to first half of 2019.
The first half 2020 results were largely driven by the second quarter that witnessed the most severe impact of COVID-19 on airlines operation. Regular flight schedule was affected by airport closures and suspension of flights. Operations during the second quarter relied by large on repatriation, charter, and cargo flights. This resulted in lower revenues for the second quarter reaching AED 120 million and consequently impacting the second quarter profitability to a net loss of AED 239 million.
