Austrian Airlines have published their annual figures showing an improved performance and result following the companies restructuring efforts.Offering an overview of the Austrian Airline Group’s annual results, Chief Executive Officer Alfred ?-tsch said: “In the business year 2006, the Austrian Airlines
Group has introduced crucial restructuring steps and started out on an important new course. We
have significantly improved our operating performance and result. The key factors in this have been
the increase in our flight revenue and the significantly stronger growth in our yields compared to
unit costs. On the other hand, extraordinary effects - overwhelmingly the result of the restructuring
of the Group’s long-haul segment and the personnel cost provisions this necessitated - had a
negative influence on the result. In this challenging environment, it proved impossible to achieve a
positive result. Following the successful conclusion of the capital increase, however, we have taken
another important step towards completing our restructuring programme, and are now in a position
to implement key measures more quickly. We are pursuing a clear strategy focussing on the
markets of Central and Eastern Europe, basing that strategy on a well-established, strong brand. We
shall continue to move forward with our quality and product offensive in 2007.”
Improvement in result situation
Although the adjusted EBIT of the Group remained marginally negative at EUR -8.3m, this figure
was up by EUR 43.7m, a major improvement on the previous year. The unadjusted EBIT including
extensive extraordinary positions - mainly provisions for the redimensioning of long-haul routes,
exchange rate gains and value adjustments for Slovak Airlines - improved from EUR -100.0m to
EUR -89.0m.
The balance of financial income and expenses improved in the report period, overall the financial
result of the Austrian Airlines Group decreased by EUR 19.5m to EUR -49.1m in 2006 (2005:
EUR -29.6m) due to exchange rate-related depreciations of securities in the report period and
appreciations in 2005. On this basis, the result before tax reached a value of EUR -138.1m (2005:
EUR -129.6m). Overall, this produced an annual result of EUR -129.9m (2005: EUR -129.1m).
However, one of the most important factors in this result trend, which was below expectations, were
the continuing high kerosene prices experienced in 2006, which generated total additional costs for
the Group of EUR 75.7m.
Chief Financial Officer Thomas Kleibl made the following statement on the balance sheet of the
Austrian Airlines Group: “The key objectives of the Austrian Airlines Group in 2006 were to continue
reducing the Group’s liabilities and to improve the balance sheet structure. The past year has seen
us bring down net debt from EUR 1,083.5m to EUR 715.7m and improve our net gearing (net debt
in relation to shareholders’ equity) from 191.6% to 91.2% through the increase in our shareholders’
equity. The capital increase successfully completed last year also helps to reinforce our equity
position, making us substantially more resistant to external crises.”
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