El Israel Airlines (El Al) has reported its first fourth-quarter net profit since 2015. The airline recorded an $8.5 million net profit in the fourth quarter of 2022, with the help of a $9 million capital gain. The airline ended the year 2022 with a net profit of $109 million after combined losses of nearly $1 billion in 2020 and 2021.
In 2022, El Al generated revenues of $1.98bn, from which it made an operating profit of $112.8 million and a net profit of $109 million. The fourth-quarter revenue of $561 million was higher than the $518 million achieved in pre-COVID 2019 and more than double of the same period in 2021.
In the last three months, the airline’s operating profit jumped to $46 million as compared to loss of $77.4 million in 4Q of 2021 and airline reported a net profit of $8.5 million, compared to loss of $110 million same time in 2021.
Going ahead, the airline is targeting revenues of $3.5 billion by 2028, almost 75% increase from last year. EL AL CEO Dina Ben Tal Ganancia said that she targeted 7.5 million passengers annually by 2028, compared to the 4.2 million carried in 2022, with a 24% market share at Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport.
With the opening up of airspace in Oman to Israeli Airlines, EL AI plans to make the most of it on its routes to Thailand, India and beyond. The airline is reportedly looking at adding flights to Australia and is considering services to the Maldives, the Philippines and Singapore.
Meanwhile, the airline launched a twice-weekly service between Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport and Tokyo’s Narita International Airport. The route will initially be operated on Wednesdays and Saturdays between 1 March and 30 November 2023, with the 787-9.