Aeroflot saw cargo revenue rise by 6% to RUB 13,613m for the first nine months of the year compared with the same period last year. Cargo and mail volumes grew by 4.6%.
Overall for the period to the end of September 2019, Aeroflot Group’s revenue increased by 12.4% year-on-year to RUB 523,983m.
The group noted that consistently high fuel prices and foreign exchange pressures contributed to moderate results in the first six months and that the hosting of the World Cup in June and July 2018 resulted in a high base in terms of yields that could not be further increased.
In September, the group announced ambitious growth plans to almost double passenger traffic to 90-100m by 2023, from 55.7 in 2018. It plans to expand its fleet by 31 aircraft to 398 in total, including a schedule to phase in new wide-body Airbus A350 aircraft (11 by the end of 2020).
The budget for 2020 also factors in new opportunities connected with infrastructure development at Sheremetyevo, Aeroflot’s home airport, as well as the launch of a new hub in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia.
