SIA sees $142m net loss in Q3

This was mainly driven by reduced passenger flown revenue.

Singapore Airlines (SIA) saw losses in Q3, with gross revenue plummeting by 76.1% YoY, from $3,404m to $1,067m.

SIA reported a net loss of $142m, down by $457m against last year.

Overall, SIA’s operating loss for Q3 was $331m, a $780m reversal from the $449m figure logged the year prior.

The losses were primarily due to a severe drop in passenger-flown revenue caused by low traffic, SIA said. Passenger carriage dropped 97.6% YoY, though it grew 44.8% QoQ as capacity increased by 90.8% in Q3.

The losses were slightly offset by improvements in cargo flown revenue. “In response to the continued strong demand for pharmaceutical and e-commerce shipments, and an uptick in general cargo demand, SIA added capacity by stepping up the frequency of passenger aircraft operating cargo-only flights and through the resumption of more passenger services,” SIA said.

Expenditure plunged by 65.2% YoY, from $2,624m to $1,398m. Driven by cost-saving measures, non-fuel spend fell by 54.7% YoY to $1,540m.

On the other hand, net fuel cost decreased by 77.3%, from $933m to $274m.

Notably, the International Air Transport Association predicted that whilst APAC airlines lost $42.44b (US$31.7b) in 2020, they would lead the recovery and would only lose $10.04b (US$7.5b) in 2021.