US Airways reports second quarter profit

Excluding net special charges, US Airways (US) reported a second-quarter net profit of $321 million, more than tripling its second quarter 2011 net profit (excluding net special charges) of $106 million. It also reiterated its support for a possible merger with American Airlines (AA) telling analysts and journalists Wednesday, “AMR has indicated it is actually open to considering mergers while it is in bankruptcy … We’re certain that any objective analysis [will show] that the best plan … for AMR is a merger with US Airways during the bankruptcy process.”

The insight is a turnaround from its last quarterly earnings report in which US sought a “cooperative and consensual process” with AA management.

The carrier recorded GAAP net profit for the second quarter of $306 million, a $214 million year-over-year jump from $92 million.

"We are extremely pleased to report the highest quarterly profit in our company's history,” US Group chairman and CEO Doug Parker said. “Consumer demand for our product remained strong during the second quarter, resulting in record revenue, passenger yields, and unit revenue performance. These financial and operating results are not only the best in US Airways' history but also among the very best in the industry, proving that US Airways is well-positioned for the remainder of 2012 and beyond.”

Revenues increased 7.2% year-over-year to $3.8 billion, on a 0.7% increase in operating expenses to $3.4 billion. Fuel costs for the quarter fell 4.4% to $906 million and operating income totaled $404 million, a significant jump from 2011 second quarter operating income of $177 million. Mainline traffic grew 0.9% to 16.4 billion RPMs on a 1.4% lift in capacity to 19.4 billion ASMs, producing a load factor of 84.6%, down 0.5 point. Yield improved 6.3% to 14.91 cents.

(Christine Boynton - ATWOnline News)