Domestic airline SpiceJet posted a net profit of Rs 42.5 crore for December 31, 2021, ended the quarter on Tuesday. In the same quarter in the year-ago period, the firm had reported a loss of Rs 66.7 crore.

The low-cost carrier’s revenue for the October to December 2021 period grew 33.8 percent on a year-on-year (YoY) basis to Rs 2,263 crore as against Rs 1,692 crore in the same quarter last fiscal.

Ajay Singh, Chairman and Managing Director, SpiceJet, said SpiceJet’s profit in Q3 FY2022 was driven by excellent logistics operations, rebound in passenger traffic and various accommodations from aircraft manufacturers and lessors.

“The passenger industry witnessed the much-needed turnaround in the third quarter as COVID-19 cases ebbed in the first half of the quarter, travel picked up significantly and there was finally hope that the worst was behind us. However, that changed by the second half of December as Omicron halted that recovery.

According to Singh, SpiceJet’s performance would have been much better but was impacted by the unexpected delay in the return to service of the 737 MAX, rising fuel costs and certain exceptional adjustments.

“There are renewed signs of recovery in the passenger segment and the logistics segment continues to remain strong,” he added.

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The airline’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) slipped 52.4 percent to Rs 116.4 crore. The EBITDA in the year-ago period was recorded at Rs 244.3 crore (YoY). The EBITDA margin in the quarter under review stood at 5.1 percent, against 14.4 percent in the same quarter last fiscal.

SpiceJet's one-time loss stood at Rs 77.4 crore.

The low-cost carrier, which is going through turbulent times, was scheduled to announce the financial results for the quarter ended December 2021 on Monday. It postponed its scheduled board meet to Tuesday saying the company's audit committee meeting for approval of December quarter results was inconclusive due to paucity of time.

Investors cheered SpiceJet’s Q3 earnings as the stock rose 7.34 percent to Rs 63.60 on the Bombay Stock Exchange at 3 pm, after the results announcement.

(Edited by : Kanishka Sarkar)