Airlines

Norwegian sees traffic fall in June due to 737 Max grounding

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Norwegian carried almost 3.5 million passengers in June – nearly 22,000 less than the same month – as grounding of its 737 Max fleet impacted traffic results.

However, the airline’s unit revenue improved by 10 per cent compared to the same month previous year.

The total traffic (RPK) increased by seven per cent, and the capacity growth (ASK) was five per cent. The load factor was 91.5 per cent, up one percentage point.

“The total number of passengers declined slightly in June, due to the grounding of 18 Boeing 737 MAX and less charter capacity. At the same time the number of long-haul passengers increased considerably.

“After taking delivery of one Dreamliner in June, we now have a long-haul fleet consisting of 36 new, more fuel-efficient aircraft. Following a period of significant expansion and investments, I’m pleased to see that the June figures show 10 percent higher unit revenue and that our growth is slowing down, in line with our strategy of moving from growth to profitability,” said CEO of Norwegian Bjørn Kjos.

Norwegian operated 99.4 percent of the scheduled flights in June, whereof 70,9 percent departed on time (unchanged compared to the same month previous year)

The company’s on-time performance was impacted negatively by the grounding of 18 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, consequently leading to more wetlease aircraft than normal.

The company took delivery of one Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner in June.

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