‘Strong’ 1Q23 Results for Air Transat

Close-up of an Air Transat aircraft fuselage and tail.
Photo Credit: Air Transat
Jack K Byrne 4 Min Read
4 Min Read

Transat A.T, the company that owns and operates Canadian carrier Air Transat, has announced its first quarter 2023 results saying it had “strong” results in a “challenging environment.”

Continuing Momentum


Transat’s Q1 results (quarter ending 31 January 2023) show it generated over 660 million CAD in revenue. An increase of 465 million CAD from the same quarter in 2022.

This resulted in an adjusted operating income (adjusted EBITDA) OF 3.3 million CAD and an operating loss (EBIT) of 38.1 million CAD.

Compared to the quarter in 2022, the adjusting operating loss was almost 36.37 million CAD – a swing in fortune of almost 39 million. Its operating loss was also reduced from 73.8 million CAD, almost halving the loss for the same quarter in the previous year.

“The momentum from the end of 2022 continues, confirming our financial scenarios,” stated Annick Guérard, President and Chief Executive Officer of Transat. “Transat is on an upswing and is headed for a return to profitability.”

The carrier had re-opened its network “comparable to that of 2019” but with lower load factors, coming in at 84.5%.

In 2022, Transat cancelled almost 30% of flights due to the COVID-19 Omicron variant and lower demand as a result.

The Montreal-basec carrier also saw an 11% increase, for the same quarter in 2020, in customer deposits for future travel, a result of 898.3 million CAD.

Guérard added: “These results are especially encouraging since the first quarter, which falls in the shoulder period, is usually the lowest of the year.”

The carrier stated it was seeing increasing demand and higher average selling prices but results were damped by higher fuel costs.

Air Transat in 2023


As the airline moves closer to the end of 2Q23, it’s reported load factors were 3% lower than 2019 levels. However, it reports yield is “significantly higher” with an increase in 25%.

By being “prudent” the airline weathered many of challenges seen in 2022, such as weather disruption in North America, seizing market opportunities in line with changes in travel restrictions and minimizing operational risks.

With the combined results of high demand and higher prices, the airline expects to cope with higher global costs, such as fuel and inflation. It is optimistic for the 2023 Summer based on its winter results.

Air Transat expressed thanks to its employees for demonstrating its corporate values. It said this was the reason it achieved strong volume and maintained its customer service reputation.

The airline projects it will achieve 90% of its capacity, compared to 2019, for the fuel year 2023. This will be consistent with IATA’s projections in Transat’s key markets.

“Resilient demand for travel is supporting prices and helps us deal with the pressure on operating costs. The context is therefore challenging but remains favourable to recovery in travel and Transat’s relaunch,” Guérard added.

Photo Credit: Transat A.T.
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