Volotea plans to grow fleet and network after ‘historic margins’ in 2023

Spanish carrier Volotea is aiming to add three or four aircraft to its fleet in 2024 as it looks to continue on a growth trajectory that has powered it significantly beyond its pre-Covid offering. The privately owned airline outlined its plans for the coming year on 30 January, alongside an initial review of its performance in 2023, when it achieved revenue of “around E700m ($758m)” and “historic financial margins for a company with just over 10 years of existence”. That revenue estimate compares with reported figures of E557m in 2022 and E441m in the last pre-pandemic year, 2019. Volotea is yet to provide more detail on its financial performance in 2023, including its profitability. In August last year it reported a net loss of E138m for 2022, citing a significant rise in costs, notably including jet fuel. The carrier notes that it operated “an extensive network of over 410 routes” during 2023, “with more than 50% exclusively operated by the carrier”. It is aiming to increase that network to 450 routes this year – with a continued focus on more than half of those being exclusive to Volotea – while offering between 12.5m and 13m seats, which equates to a rise of 12-16% year on year.<br/>