Jet Airways posts Rs 101.22 crore loss in Q3 FY12

Private carrier Jet Airways today said it registered a net loss of Rs 101.22 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2011, in sharp contrast to a net profit of Rs 118.23 crore in the same quarter last fiscal, due to higher ATF costs and rupee depreciation.

"High fuel prices together with the depreciating Indian rupee versus US dollar have pulled down the operating results to an extent. However, yield improvements due to seasonality and the narrowing gap between demand-supply imbalances have helped the airlines to post operating profits," Jet Airways (India) Ltd CEO Nikos Kardassis said.

He said the airline would continue to remain competitive through innovative marketing initiatives, an increase in ancillary revenues, an enduring focus on cost-cutting measures through contract renegotiation and process improvements across all segments of the business.

"Weakening of the Indian rupee vis-a-vis the US dollar has had an impact on US dollar-related costs, including for aviation turbine fuel (ATF), because the same is priced in US dollars," an official statement said. "Though we have a natural hedge in terms of our US dollar earnings to a big extent, we are still impacted because of the same and this is largely uncontrollable in the short-term. Consequently, many of the cost line items have a currency impact embedded in it," it said.