SpiceJet posts Rs 238-crore profit for third quarter

In the 2014 December quarter, the airline had incurred a net loss of Rs 275.03 crore (Rs 2.75 billion).

Budget airline SpiceJet on Friday reported a net profit of Rs 238.40 crore (Rs 2.38 billion) for the three-month period ended December 2015, staying profitable for the fourth straight quarter mainly aided by lower fuel costs.

This is also the highest ever profit recorded by the carrier, which was facing turbulent times a year ago.

In the 2014 December quarter, the airline had incurred a net loss of Rs 275.03 crore (Rs 2.75 billion).

Total income from operations jumped to Rs 1,459.95 crore (Rs 14.59 billion) in the latest December quarter compared to Rs 1,311.18 crore (Rs 13.11 billion) in the year-ago period.

"This is the fourth consecutive profitable quarter for SpiceJet since its turnaround after December 2014.

"The airline recorded a load factor of 91.6 per cent for the quarter, the highest in the industry.

"This load factor reflects an increase of 8 per cent over the same period last year," SpiceJet said in a statement.

Aircraft fuel expenses dropped nearly 35 per cent to Rs 366.63 crore (Rs 3.66 billion) in the 2015 December quarter compared to Rs 562.37 crore (Rs 5.62 billion) in the same period a year ago.

SpiceJet Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh said the company was back to near normal operations in the latest December quarter.

"While the margins remain slightly depressed due to wet lease operations, the Chennai floods and exchange losses, we are happy with the progress we have made so far," he noted.

The company would continue to work on reducing legacy cost and increasing efficiency, he added.

SpiceJet has a fleet of 25 Boeing 737NG, 2 Airbus A320s and 14 Bombardier Q-400s.

It operates 291 daily flights to 40 destinations, including six international ones.