Air Canada saw its profits fall by half even while its revenue rose in its latest quarter, as the country’s largest airline struggled to complete the final stages of its recovery from COVID-19.
“Our second-quarter results were solid, although they did not achieve our internal expectations,” CEO Michael Rousseau told analysts on a conference call Wednesday.
Higher capacity and strong demand for international flights drove a year-over-year revenue growth of two per cent to $5.52 billion in the quarter ended June 30.
But revenue-per-seat figures dropped compared with the year before, when soaring post-pandemic demand and lower capacity across the industry made for fuller planes, higher fares and wider profit margins.
As a result, net income in Air Canada’s second quarter fell 51 per cent year-over-year to $410 million.
Operating expenses that stood nine per cent above those of a year earlier also help account for the plunge, as the …