Germanwings Has First Profitable Year
Low-cost airline Germanwings, part of Lufthansa, made its first profit this year as sales rose 60 percent, and plans to expand with a new hub and extra planes next year, the company said on Thursday.
Germanwings, which was set up in 2002, said its supervisory board had approved an order for three new Airbus aircraft, which will be placed in the first weeks of the new year.
The airline said sales rose to around EUR245 million (USD$333.2 million) in 2004 from EUR150 million (USD$204 million) a year earlier as the number of passengers rose 46 percent to 3.5 million.
"Parallel to this strong expansion, Germanwings managed to make the leap to profitability," it said in a statement, adding that it would close the year with a profit.
Lufthansa owns 49 percent of regional carrier Eurowings, the parent of Germanwings.
Germanwings, which flies from Cologne/Bonn and Stuttgart airports, said it planned to open a third hub in Germany and to carry more than 5 million passengers in 2005.
The airline, which currently has a fleet of 15 aircraft, said it would need up to five more planes to meet its target.
(Reuters)
I have been away, so I don't know if anything has been posted about this planned new hub?
Cheers,
White cap
