OREANDA-NEWS. August 06, 2013. In the second quarter the revenue of Estonian Air increased by 20% from the previous quarter to EUR 19.5 million, and the net loss decreased by 80% to 0.9 million.

“The results indicate that our restructuring plan is working,” said Mr. Jan Palmer, the CEO of Estonian Air. “The turnaround program of the company has now been completed, and as a sign of this step the airline in June recorded its first monthly profit in almost three years.”

In the first six months of 2013, the revenue was 35.7 million euros (19% less than in 2012). The net loss of the first half of the year was 5.8 million euros which is 61% less compared to the same period last year and slightly ahead of plan.

During the first half, Estonian Air has carried 275 thousand passengers, 35% less than last year, while flying 41% less roundtrips than in the same period 2012. The number of employees dropped 48% from 341 to 171.

“The turnaround program is finalized as the company has done from its side everything needed in terms of downsizing,’ said Mr. Palmer. “As a smaller regional carrier, we can now focus on improving day-to-day operations to reach sustainability. In such a volatile industry, this can be a difficult challenge.”

According to Mr. Palmer, the airline is still working on some additional issues related to the restructuring plan. “At the moment, the airline uses two different types of aircraft. After 2015, we will have one type of regional jet aircraft, and we are currently assessing our fleet options,” added Palmer.

In June, the Republic of Estonia submitted the Restructuring Plan for the airline for approval to the European Commission Directorate General of Competition. A decision is expected at some point by the end of the first half of 2014.

“The mission of Estonian Air is to provide Estonia with double daily connections to destinations of strategic importance,” said Palmer. “Every small country on the periphery of Europe depends on such connections, and we are committed to providing these services.”

Estonian Air continues to proceed with the sales of its non-core assets. In June, Estonian Air sold its subsidiary airline AS Estonian Air Regional to Fort Aero BBAA OU, a private jet operator. At the time of the sale, the Regional entity was dormant and had no aircraft, no employees, and no assets. In July, the airline redelivered its last remaining Boeing 737 to its Lessor.

Estonian Air, Estonia’s national carrier, is the biggest operator at Tallinn Airport. Estonian Air flies to Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Brussels, Oslo, Moscow, St Petersburg, Kiev, Vilnius and Trondheim. In addition, from June to August, Estonian Air will fly between Tallinn and Paris, and from May to September to Nice.