SEOUL, KOREA - Asiana Airlines announced on May 15 that it posted a consolidated operating loss of 2.1 billion won for the first quarter of this year, failing to make a positive year-on-year turnaround.Its first-quarter sales also fell 0.4 percent to 1.41 trillion won. Net loss narrowed by 1.6 billion won to 46.6 billion won.

 

A company official said, “In our passenger business, the Japanese routes yielded a poor performance. However, we could narrow the operating loss thanks to the increase in passenger and cargo demand in Chinese and Southeast Asian routes.”

Asiana Airlines plans to introduce a series of new aircraft, including the Airbus A380 and A330 within the second quarter, as well as to strengthen its long-distance services towards Istanbul, Paris and Seattle. It will also expand its Southeast Asian routes by adding flights to Kalibo(the Philippines) and Hanoi.

In the cargo transportation business, Asiana Airlines plans to carry out profit-centered flight operations, while placing more focus on attracting e-commerce cargoes.