The Emirates Group has reported a 2021-22 half-year net loss of AED 5.7 billion ($1.6 billion), compared to an AED 14.1 billion ($3.8 billion) loss for the same period last year.
It said it saw a “strong revenue recovery” underpinned by the easing of travel restrictions and corresponding increase in demand for air transport as Covid-19 vaccination programmes made progress.
Group revenue was AED 24.7 billion ($6.7 billion) for the first six months of its 2021-22 financial year, up 81% year-on-year.
The group reported earnings (ebitda) of AED 5.6 billion ($1.5 billion), described as “a dramatic turnaround” from a negative AED 43 million ($12 million) figure.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman and chief executive, said: “While there’s still some way to go before we restore our operations to pre-pandemic levels and return to profitability, we are well on the recovery path with healthy revenue and a solid cash balance at the end of our first half of 2021-22.”
The number of employees on September 30, 2021, was 2% lower than it was on March 31, 2021, at just over 73,500.
“In line with the expected ramp-up in capacity and business activities in the coming months, Emirates and dnata have embarked on targeted recruitment drives to support its requirements, prioritising the rehiring of employees previously on furlough or made redundant,” said the group in its results statement.
By the end of September, the airline was operating passenger and cargo services to 139 airports, using its entire Boeing 777 fleet and 37 A380s.
Emirates carried 6.1 million passengers between April 1 and 30 September 30, 2021, up 319% from the same period last year.
In the first half of the 2021-22 financial year, Emirates’ loss was AED 5.8 billion ($1.6 billion), compared to last year’s loss of AED 12.6 billion ($3.4 billion).
Emirates’ revenue, including other operating income, of AED 21.7 billion ($5.9 billion) was up 86% compared with the AED 11.7 billion ($3.2 billion) recorded during the same period last year.
“The strong revenue recovery reflects quick return of passenger demand wherever flight and travel restrictions were eased around the world,” said the statement.
Furthermore, dnata’s businesses in cargo and ground handling, catering and retail, and travel services saw demand return quickly “wherever pandemic-related flight and travel restrictions were eased”.
Dnata’s travel division contributed AED 147 million ($40 million) to revenue compared to AED 95 million ($26 million) for the same period last year, up 55%.
The division reported an underlying total transactional value (TTV) sales of AED 726 million ($198 million), “after an exceptional negative TTV of AED 246 million ($67 million) for the same period last year which was caused by the significant volumes of refunds and pay-out in cancelled customer bookings at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020”.