Canadian carrier WestJet anticipates pressure on its unit revenues during the second quarter from the weak economy and aggressive pricing.
Carrier chief executive officer Sean Durfy supplied that assessment in a statement today as he explained, "revenue per available seat mile (RASM) in the second quarter is showing significant declines, with an anticipated drop of 16 to 18 percent year-over-year".
But Durfy adds while WestJet's challenges are comparable to those facing US carriers. "We believe we are better positioned than most to return to stronger RASM results when the economy begins to rebound".
During an earnings call last month Durfy said WestJet was trimming capacity growth in 2009 from five percent to three percent largely through schedule tweaks. At the time he highlighted some weakness in the Canadian domestic market, citing a squeeze in both leisure and business demand.
The chief executive also said he was hopeful the peak summer period would "break the cycle of having to discount". Durfy noted since November WestJet had discounted fares by 10%-15% to meet load factor targets of 78%-82%.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news