Turkish Airlines Net Profit Surges 244 Percent

THY Turkish Airlines' net profit rose 244 percent to TRY668 million lira (USD$415.4 million) in the first nine months of the year, and it said it had positive expectations for the year as a whole.

Sales in the same period jumped 24 percent to TRY4.416 billion as the partly state-owned airline continued to expand to new destinations and added flights.

"Although the fall in fuel prices recently has been encouraging for the airline sector, the fact that this fall was a consequence of expected stagnation resulting from the global financial crisis is a negative factor," THY said in a statement on Friday.

"However, the Turkish airline sector will continue to grow. Because of the successful performance during this period, our company's expectation for 2008 is positive," it said.

THY said fuel costs made up 36 percent of operating costs during the nine month period, up from 27 percent a year earlier.

The flag carrier has embarked on an ambitious expansion program to become one of Europe's leading airlines, with plans to buy up to 105 aircraft from Airbus and Boeing over the next few years. The airline is also seeking acquisitions in the region.

THY said earlier on Friday the number of passengers it carried in the first 10 months of the year rose 14.7 percent to 18.9 million.

Available seat kilometres rose 10.2 percent to 38.2 billion for the period, and revenue passenger kilometres rose 12.6 percent to 28.6 billion.

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