Posted on: Friday, December 17, 2004

Aloha Airlines shows $6 million loss for third quarter

Associated Press

Aloha Airlines Inc., which earlier this month laid off 12 top managers and froze 35 open management positions, citing higher fuel costs, lost $6 million in the third quarter.

It was the fourth quarterly loss in a row for Aloha, which had a record third-quarter gain of $11.3 million in 2003.

The airline's operating income swung to a $4.2 million loss from a $13 million gain a year ago while operating expenses rose 22 percent to $127.7 million from $104.5 million, according to data released by the federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

The carrier's fuel costs were $22.7 million in the most recent quarter, compared with $13.8 million a year ago, the agency said.

David Banmiller, who took over as president and chief executive of parent Aloha Airgroup Inc. in mid-November, attributed the loss to the higher fuel costs and lower yields in spite of an 8 percent increase in the airline's trans-Pacific service. "We're taking very aggressive action, both with respect to revenue production and expense reduction to return Aloha to profitability," he said

By comparison, Hawaiian Airlines had an operating profit in the third quarter but operating earnings fell about 28 percent to $31.6 million from $44 million a year ago. Hawaiian's fuel costs last quarter went up about 50 percent from a year ago.