BUSINESS NEWS
Air France-KLM hails Q3 profit as carryings rise 4.7%
Air France-KLM posted a quarterly operating profit of €1.2 billion for the three months to September, an increase of €23 million on the previous year, with a 4.7% increase in passengers to 29.2 million lagging a capacity increase of 5.1%. Group revenue rose 2.6% year on
year to €9.2 billion, but net profit for the quarter was down by €56 million on 2024 at €768 million. However, the group reported a net profit of €1.17 billion for the nine months to September, almost double the amount in the same period last year. Air France blamed the ‘solidarity
tax’ on fares in France and increase in charges at Amsterdam Schiphol for a “significant impact” on unit
Air France
NCLH reports record third-quarter revenue despite dip in passengers
revenue, although overall costs rose only 1.3% year on year. Capacity for the nine months to September was up 4.4% on 2024 but passenger numbers rose 5% to 78.2 million. Air France-KLM chief executive
Ben Smith praised the group’s resilience “in a challenging environment”. KLM reported “no recovery yet”
despite a quarterly operating profit of €341 million, €54 million down on 2024, saying it remains under pressure “due to persistently high costs and operational challenges”.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings reported record third-quarter revenue of $2.9 billion, up 5% year on year, with group president and chief executive Harry Sommer hailing a “strong performance across all brands”. However, the
Norwegian Aqua
Norwegian brand, and we expect this to continue into 2026.” He added: “Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises continue to capitalise on sustained demand for luxury travel.” NCLH carried
group’s quarterly profit of $419 million was down from $475 million the previous year. Sommer attributed the increase
in revenue to higher capacity and strong demand, saying: “We’re seeing the benefits of our focus on Caribbean itineraries as we move into the fourth quarter which are attracting more families to the
803,000 passengers in the quarter, down
from more than 812,000 the previous
year, and 2,211,000 in the
first nine months of the year, down from 2,261,000. However, the number of passenger cruise days rose from 6.5 million to more than 6.8 million in the quarter and from 18.7 million to 18.9 million in the first nine months.
Europe flights ‘to hit 12m by 2030’ Ian Taylor
European air navigation body Eurocontrol released a revised seven-year forecast in October, noting “significant changes” to overflights of central and northwest Europe due to airspace capacity constraints amid “ongoing conflicts”. It forecast the number of flights
in European airspace would increase by 3.1% next year with “sustained growth expected” this winter taking annual traffic back to pre-pandemic levels following a 3.6% increase this year on 2024. But it warned there would be
“notable variations” at state level, arguing: “It is impossible to predict when currently restricted airspaces will be fully reopened.” Eurocontrol forecast European
travelweekly.co.uk
air traffic would be 10% greater in 2030 than in 2019, having last issued a medium-term forecast in February when it predicted traffic growth of 2.5% next year and annual growth of 2.2% between 2025 and 2029. It now forecasts the number of
flights in European airspace will grow at an annual rate of 2.2% through to 2031, surpassing 12 million flights in 2030 – up from 11 million this year – and hit 12.4 million by the end of the forecast period. However, it warned airlines would
continue to suffer delays in deliveries of new aircraft as well as demands for increased maintenance on the engines of some models, noting: “Fleet issues are expected to continue in 2026 due to issues with aircraft engines forcing airlines to ground part of their fleets for mandatory
Frankfurt airport
maintenance, coupled with delays in aircraft deliveries.” Eurocontrol reported the average
price of airfares in Europe rose slower than inflation this year despite “resilient” demand, with average fares increasing by 1.7% between January and August compared with a 2.7% inflation rate in the euro zone and 3.8% in the UK.
It noted that “sustained
leisure demand” for flights to the Mediterranean remained the “main engine” of growth, with a strong increase in traffic flows beyond Europe “notably in the southeast states”. Eurocontrol forecast 2.5% growth
in flights in the UK next year and an annual 1.6% rate of growth in the UK through to 2031.
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Shutterstock/Jokue-photography, Dirk Daniel Mann
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