JetBlue Airways has disclosed a slip into the red in the second quarter, reporting an operating loss of $144 million after incurring an impairment charge related to the planned phaseout of its Embraer 190s.
The New York-based carrier had made an operating profit of $347 million in the same period of 2017.
Operating revenue was up 5% at $1.93 billion, but operating expenses rose 39% to $2.07 billion. JetBlue recorded a pre-tax special charge of $319 million related to the 60 E190s, which will start to leave its fleet in 2020. The airline earlier this month ordered 60 Airbus A220-300s to replace the E190s.
Excluding the special charge, JetBlue would have reported adjusted pre-tax income of $159 million, about half its level in the second quarter of 2017.
The airline made a net loss of $120 million, compared with a net profit of $207 million in the corresponding period a year ago.
Passenger unit revenue was down 1% at 12.27 cents, while unit cost excluding fuel increased 1.9% to 8.26 cents.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
