Saturday, July 20, 2024
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Despite the industry’s overcapacity in the domestic market, United Airlines expects to achieve a pre-tax margin in the second quarter that will be among the best in the industry. The company expects to achieve the best unit revenue performance compared to its large peers, driven by its core revenue strategies.
United Airlines saw strong growth in key markets with its frequent business travelers, with revenue from those customers increasing 11% year over year in the second quarter. That compares with a 5% increase in total passenger revenue, Andrew Nocella, United’s chief commercial officer, said during an earnings call Thursday.
Outstanding performance
Combined premium revenue increased 8.5% year-over-year to $7.4 billion, with premium capacity expanding 9.1%. Polaris’ commercial load factor increased 2.6 percentage points compared to the second quarter of 2023, according to Noshela.
In response to an analyst’s question about Alaska Airlines’ announcement Wednesday that it would expand its premium seat offerings and reports that JetBlue may follow suit.
United League Q2 Results
United Airlines reported second-quarter passenger revenue of about $13.7 billion, up 5% year over year. Total revenue for the quarter was about $15 billion, up from $14.2 billion a year earlier. Net income topped $1.3 billion, up 23% from the second quarter of 2023.
The airline saw passenger revenue growth in all regions except the Middle East, India and Africa, which saw a 35 percent year-over-year decline to $258 million. The Pacific region saw a 24 percent increase to nearly $1.4 billion, and Europe reported a nearly 9 percent increase to more than $2.8 billion. Domestic passenger revenue reached nearly $8 billion, up 3 percent from Q2 2023, while total international passenger revenue grew 8 percent to more than $5.7 billion.
In the second quarter, production capacity grew 8.3% compared to the previous year. The average cost of fuel during this period was $2.76 per gallon.
