Turkish Airlines has today spoken about its operations during its earnings call for the third quarter of 2020. The global health crisis has undoubtedly shaken up the aviation industry, and the conditions are constantly shifting. However, as the climate takes another turn for worse in several countries, the flag carrier of Turkey feels that it will be better equipped this time around.
An ever-changing situation
Following the unprecedented impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in March, airlines across the globe were forced to ground their fleets amid strict travel restrictions. July and August services were more successful in terms of recovery for Turkish Airlines. However, the operator started to see the number of new cases in some of its major destinations increasing towards the end of September and October.
Regardless, the airline feels that it is better positioned to handle the situation this time. The carrier highlights Turkey didn’t have such significant travel restrictions as many other countries. This factor, coupled well with the fact that the nation remained on safe travel lists from some European countries such as the United Kingdom for much of the summer. Subsequently, regular amounts of tourists were coming in.
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Showing its intent
Conditions are already shaking up again, with many European states going into lockdown. However, Turkish Airlines is still showing its determination to scale up. Notably, it is planning to continue flying to over 200 destinations out of 324 total by end of November.
“First of all, our expectation is even the second wave, which we are seeing it now, is going to be less impactful than the first as all the countries are well prepared, and we expect it to be less distortive than the first wave. If things go further down and we see more quarantines and more travel restrictions, we will be following the same steps that we did in the first wave,” Turkish Airlines highlighted in the earnings call.
“We will be more ready if the second wave comes more seriously. However, given the current situation, in Turkey at least, we don’t have that sentiment. And Turkey, throughout the summer months, has been one of the most welcoming countries in air travel. We haven’t imposed any significant travel restrictions to incoming countries.”
A tough year
Like for many carriers, it has been a tough year for Turkish Airlines. It generated around $1.5 billion in revenue in Q3, which is approximately 40% of revenue compared with Q3 2019. Moreover, during the first nine months of this year, it reached almost $5 billion in revenue, which accounts for around 50% of revenue during the same period in 2019.
The company recently made a deal with Airbus that extends its future aircraft delivery timeline until 2028. Moreover, it is planning to conclude another agreement with Boeing.
With cost-cutting measures, the airline achieved $75 million profit before investment activities from its main operations during Q3. Therefore, there is some hope for management despite the challenging conditions.
What are your thoughts about Turkish Airlines’ statements in its third-quarter earnings call? What do you make of the carrier’s operations heading into the new year? Let us know what you think of the situation in the comment section.