PARIS, France (AFP) — French-Dutch airline Air France-KLM said on Friday that it returned to profit for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic in the second quarter, but was hampered by a global shortage of staff at the airport.
“The strong recovery we are seeing this summer is putting the entire aviation industry to the test,” said Chief Executive Benjamin Smith.
“While Air France-KLM has prepared for near-pre-pandemic levels of demand, our airlines are not immune to major operational challenges emerging around the world.”
The carrier said it recorded a net profit of 324 million euros ($330 million) in the April-June period, compared to a loss of 1.5 billion euros in the same period a year earlier.
The last time Air France-KLM turned a profit was in the summer of 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic shut down most air traffic around the world and caused the French-Dutch airline to lose about 11 billion euros over two years.
The group said it carried 22.8 million passengers between April and June, three times more than a year earlier.
The statement said that the group’s sales rose by 144 percent to 6.7 billion euros.
© Agence France-Presse
