SpiceJet posts Rs 238 cr profit for third quarter

Budget airline SpiceJet today reported a net profit of Rs 238.40 crore for the three-month period ended December 2015, staying profitable for the fourth straight quarter mainly aided by lower fuel costs.
This is also the highest ever profit recorded by the carrier, which was facing turbulent times a year ago.
In the 2014 December quarter, the airline had incurred a net loss of Rs 275.03 crore.
Total income from operations jumped to Rs 1,459.95 crore in the latest December quarter compared to Rs 1,311.18 crore in the year-ago period.
"This is the fourth consecutive profitable quarter for SpiceJet since its turnaround after December 2014.

"The airline recorded a load factor of 91.6 per cent for the quarter, the highest in the industry. This load factor reflects an increase of 8 per cent over the same period last year," SpiceJet said in a statement.

Aircraft fuel expenses dropped nearly 35 per cent to Rs 366.63 crore in the 2015 December quarter compared to Rs 562.37 crore in the same period a year ago.
SpiceJet Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh said the company was back to near normal operations in the latest December quarter.
"While the margins remain slightly depressed due to wet lease operations, the Chennai floods and exchange losses, we are happy with the progress we have made so far," he noted.

The company would continue to work on reducing legacy cost and increasing efficiency, he added.
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Later, in a statement, SpiceJet refuted the allegation, saying the offer is on first come-first serve basis with a limited number tickets available under it.
"The allegation is completely baseless as the sale of tickets under a limited inventory is available on first come first serve basis," a SpiceJet spokesperson said.
SpiceJet is ready to share the names of bonafide customers with DGCA with complete booking details for further verification, he added.