Icelandair carried a total of 464 thousand passengers in October, a 14% increase year-over-year. The growth was strong in the market to Iceland, where passenger numbers rose by 20% and in the market from Iceland, which grew by 31%. Of all passengers in October, 37% were traveling to Iceland, 20% from Iceland, 38% via Iceland, and 5% domestically. The load factor was 85.0%, and on-time performance was 81.4%, a 3.1 percentage point decrease year-over-year, due to a severe snowfall at the end of the month, which resulted in cancellations and delays at Keflavik Airport extending over two days. Year-to-date, 4.4 million passengers have flown with Icelandair, representing an 8% increase over the same period last year.
The leasing business continued to grow, with sold block hours up 25% year-on-year in October. Freight transport, measured in Freight Ton Kilometers, declined by 22%, while the decline in freight tons carried was 11%. A change in the market mix explains the difference between the two. The volume of goods transported has decreased on longer routes to North America, while imports have increased by 12% on shorter routes from Europe. CO2 emissions per Operational Ton Kilometer decreased by 4% due to a higher proportion of more fuel-efficient aircraft in the fleet.
Bogi Nils Bogason, Icelandair President and CEO:
"The number of passengers increased significantly in October, in line with our focus on growing outside of the peak season and thereby reducing seasonality in our operations. It is also very encouraging to see the continued success of our emphasis on the markets to and from Iceland.
On-time performance was strong in the first part of October, but heavy snowfall at the end of the month led to a year-on-year decline. I would like to thank our employees for their hard work under difficult and unusual conditions at this time of year. Unfortunately, we were forced to cancel several flights due to these conditions.
In October, we announced Miami, Florida, as a new destination in line with our strategy to increase flights during wintertime to counter seasonal markets. Miami is an exciting destination for Icelanders and other Europeans, and at the same time, we see great potential in promoting travel to Iceland and beyond to people in South Florida."
Contact information
Investors: Íris Hulda Þórisdóttir, Head of Investor Relations. E-mail:?iris@icelandair.is
Media: Asdis Petursdottir, Director Communications. E-mail:?asdis@icelandair.is