Frontier reports $40m profit in Q4, capitalises on ‘strong leisure market’
Ultra-low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines reports a $40m profit in Q4 2022 as it continues to see strong demand for leisure travel. For comparison, the Denver-based discount carrier lost $53m during the last three months of 2021. Frontier posted $906m in revenue during Q4 2022, it disclosed on 8 February. The business generated $609m during the same three months of 2021. CE Barry Biffle repeated his refrain that the airline maintains a cost advantage over its competitors during Frontier’s Q4 earnings call. “We expect to maintain this advantage for years to come,” he says. “Put simply, our strong ancillary performance and industry-leading unit costs are the variables that make it possible for us to capitalise on the strong leisure market and stimulate profitable growth for the rest of the decade.” The carrier’s expenses totalled $861m during the final quarter of 2022, up from $695m the previous year. The airline says its bottom line was boosted by ancillary revenue, or non-ticket sales. Frontier’s total ancillary revenue per passenger was $82 in Q4, up from $63 during the same quarter in 2021. For the full year, Frontier’s 2022 loss narrowed to $37m, compared with a $102m loss in 2021. Additionally, the carrier generated $3.3b in yearly revenue, up from $2b in 2021. In September 2022, Biffle told FlightGlobal that a pending tie-up between JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines would give his company a major cost advantage over its competitors. “We’re in a situation where… 95% of the capacity in the United States is going to have [a cost that is] a third or higher than ours,” Biffle said. The airline is also undertaking a major fleet renewal. At the end of 2022, Frontier had a fleet of 120 single-aisle Airbus A320s and A321s financed on operating leases that expire this year and the next that must be replaced. Frontier has commitments for 231 aircraft deliveries through 2029, including purchase commitments for 67 A320neos and 154 A321neos and direct leases for another 10 A321neos. “Our first A321neo arrived about a month ago,” Biffle says. <br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2023-02-09/unaligned/frontier-reports-40m-profit-in-q4-capitalises-on-2018strong-leisure-market2019
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/logo.png
Frontier reports $40m profit in Q4, capitalises on ‘strong leisure market’
Ultra-low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines reports a $40m profit in Q4 2022 as it continues to see strong demand for leisure travel. For comparison, the Denver-based discount carrier lost $53m during the last three months of 2021. Frontier posted $906m in revenue during Q4 2022, it disclosed on 8 February. The business generated $609m during the same three months of 2021. CE Barry Biffle repeated his refrain that the airline maintains a cost advantage over its competitors during Frontier’s Q4 earnings call. “We expect to maintain this advantage for years to come,” he says. “Put simply, our strong ancillary performance and industry-leading unit costs are the variables that make it possible for us to capitalise on the strong leisure market and stimulate profitable growth for the rest of the decade.” The carrier’s expenses totalled $861m during the final quarter of 2022, up from $695m the previous year. The airline says its bottom line was boosted by ancillary revenue, or non-ticket sales. Frontier’s total ancillary revenue per passenger was $82 in Q4, up from $63 during the same quarter in 2021. For the full year, Frontier’s 2022 loss narrowed to $37m, compared with a $102m loss in 2021. Additionally, the carrier generated $3.3b in yearly revenue, up from $2b in 2021. In September 2022, Biffle told FlightGlobal that a pending tie-up between JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines would give his company a major cost advantage over its competitors. “We’re in a situation where… 95% of the capacity in the United States is going to have [a cost that is] a third or higher than ours,” Biffle said. The airline is also undertaking a major fleet renewal. At the end of 2022, Frontier had a fleet of 120 single-aisle Airbus A320s and A321s financed on operating leases that expire this year and the next that must be replaced. Frontier has commitments for 231 aircraft deliveries through 2029, including purchase commitments for 67 A320neos and 154 A321neos and direct leases for another 10 A321neos. “Our first A321neo arrived about a month ago,” Biffle says. <br/>
