KQ 2020 Half Year Results: Kenya Airways is has sank deeper in losses. In the first six months to June this year, the national carrier posted a net loss of Sh. 14.33 billion. This loss is bigger than the full year loss of Sh. 12.99 billion last year that the carrier posted in the last financial full year.
In fact, this half year loss surpasses the annual loss that the national airline has been making over the past three years. It also serves as a forecast of the worst financial year for the airline in a years. ““The 2020 results will be significantly negatively impacted because of the projected suppressed air travel demand. We project the demand to remain at less than 50 percent of 2019 for the rest of the year,” Kenya Airways chairman Michael Joseph said. The carrier further revealed that it it may lose up to Sh. 70 billion or more in 2020.
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During the period, passenger numbers dropped by 55.5 percent to 1.1 million in contrast with 2.4 million. This saw passenger revenue fall by 53 percent to Sh. 20.23 billion. Total revenue dipped by 48 percent to Sh. 30.21 billion.
According to Joseph, the half year loss has been aggravated by the coronavirus pandemic which saw the grounding of nearly all flights in and out of the country.
“Operations were severely impacted by the Covid-19 crisis resulting in depressed half year results. The network activity from April to June was minimal due to travel restrictions and lock downs effectively reducing operations to almost nil in connecting our home market to key cities,” he said.
Kenya Airways Chief Executive Officer Allan Kilavuka said the airline is nonetheless working on a recovery plan. “We are working to see efficiency, lower fixed costs, maximizing on our digital platforms and also exploring our cargo platforms for recovery that might start in 2022 and where we see a full recovery in 2024,” he said. KQ 2020 Half Year Results.