Norwegian Air produced its second consecutive quarterly profit despite travel demand being hit by the Omicron Covid-19 variant.
The budget Scandinavian carrier, which abandoned long-haul routes from Gatwick and was forced to restructure during the pandemic, now expects to operate an expanded fleet of 70 aircraft this summer.
The airline saw pre-tax profits for the fourth quarter of 2021 reduce to 117 Norwegian krone (NOK) from NOK 169 million in the previous three months. However, the airline lost NOK 16.6 billion in the final quarter of 2020 in the midst of the Covid crisis.
A total of 3.1 million passengers were flown on a fleet of 51 aircraft, up from 2.5 million in the previous quarter and 600,000 in the same period in the previous year.
The airline said: “Norwegian has continued to focus on cost control and liquidity discipline across every aspect of the company, which has led the to an improvement in the cash position.
“By the end of the fourth quarter, cash and cash equivalents increased to NOK 7.7 billion.”
Chief executive Geir Karlsen said: “I am pleased that we have been able to adapt to fluctuations quickly and efficiently, and that we can report a profit and an improved cash position in a quarter strongly affected by the Omicron virus and government-imposed travel restrictions.
“We are looking forward to welcoming more customers on board heading into the busier spring and summer seasons, with a fleet increasing to 70 aircraft and over 270 routes on sale.”
Punctuality, meaning share of flights departing on schedule, was 87.8% in the fourth quarter of 2021, down from 94.1% in the fourth quarter of 2020 and 91% in the previous quarter.