FlyDubai ends 2018 with $43.5m loss

DUBAI: The Dubai government-owned budget carrier FlyDubai said on Wednesday that its revenues increased to $1.7 billion in 2018, though the airline ended the year with a loss of $43.5 million.
The airline that flies out of both Dubai International Airport and Dubai World Central’s Al Maktoum International Airport blamed fuel costs, rising interest rates and “unfavorable currency exchange movements” for the loss. It had made $1.5 billion in revenue in 2017, earning a narrow profit of $10 million that year. “In line with expectations, 2018 was a challenging year, however we have continued to invest in our capacity and increased revenue,” FlyDubai CEO Ghaith Al-Ghaith said.
FlyDubai, which now has a code-share deal and tighter relationship with Dubai’s long-haul carrier Emirates, offers bargain flights to locations both served and not by its well-known elder sibling. FlyDubai began operations nearly 10 years ago and its 4,000 staff now serve over 90 destinations.
The carrier flew 11 million passengers last year, slightly up from the 10.9 million it flew in 2017.