Aeroflot reports $ 786 Million loss for the first half

Russia’s national airline Aeroflot has announced its financial results for the first half of 2020.

The Russian flag carrier, which experienced a 54.2% decrease in the number of passengers compared to the first half of last year due to the Covid-19 crisis, carried 12.9 million passengers between Jan and June

Airline’s revenue dropped by 52% from 4.2 to 2.0 Billion USD comparing the first 6 months of the year with the same period of 2019.

While the airline announced a loss of approximately $ 786 million for the first six months, Andrey Chikhanchin, PJSC Aeroflot Deputy CEO for Commerce and Finance, said in a press statement:

“To ensure the Group’s financial stability we have put in place a number of optimisation measures. We entered negotiations with our key counterparties and have already reached some agreements with regard payment holidays and special terms with some of our partners. These and other measures enabled the Group to restrict the net loss in the second quarter to RUB 35.8 billion.

“As part of its efforts to secure financing, Aeroflot Group requested government support. In June, Aeroflot received RUB 70 billion worth of state guarantees, which helped the Company to obtain long-term loans with five-year terms. As of today as part of programmes to support business Aeroflot Group signed one-year agreements for a total of RUB 6.7 billion with a 2% interest rate. The Group received a RUB 7.9 billion subsidy and applied for tax deferrals. These measures support our financial stability, which is required to preserve jobs and overcome the current challenges.