Aegean Airlines Q3 net profit drops as international traffic falls

Greece's largest carrier, Aegean Airlines, on Thursday posted a 19% fall in quarterly net profit, citing the suspension of flights to and from Tel Aviv and Beirut, as well as mandatory early inspections on engines, grounding up to 17% of its jet fleet. Aegean, a member of the Star Alliance airlines group, said its net profit reached E108.3m in the third quarter, compared with 133.6m a year earlier, while its quarterly revenue was also down 3% to E630.8m. The carrier said that from the end of July the ongoing situation in the Middle East affected up to 11 daily flights from Athens, Thessaloniki, Heraklion, Rhodes and Larnaca and led to a reduction of 3.5-4% of international traffic in the third quarter. The third quarter, which includes the busy summer months, is usually the strongest for European airlines, but rising costs, unpredictability tied to the crisis in the Middle East and plane delivery delays continue to weigh on results.<br/>