Better Year: SWISS Significantly Decreases Operating Loss

The carrier cut its operating losses down to $464.8 million. SWISS significantly cut its operating losses over 2021 compared to the previous year. The airline credits its cost-cutting measures and higher cargo demand for slashing its yearly losses by around one-third.

SWISS reduces yearly operating losses

After a torrid 2020 which saw SWISS lose CHF 653.8 million ($710.5 million), the airline has cut its losses by around one-third for 2021. Over the year, SWISS posted operating losses of CHF 427.7 million ($464.8 million). The airline said, "The repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic substantially depressed the annual results of Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) for the 2021 business year, too. Despite this, SWISS was able to significantly reduce its operating loss from its prior-year level, thanks to the transformation it initiated and to comprehensive cost-saving measures."

The Swiss carrier made CHF 2.10 billion ($2.28 billion) in total revenue for the year, up 13.7% from 2020. The airline also ended the year with a positive cash flow. SWISS CEO Dieter Vranckx said, "We now need to continue our transformation, with a particular focus this year on increasing our capacities to up to 80 percent of their 2019 levels and on raising our schedules’ stability." The carrier's transformation program introduced over 2021 includes reducing its fleet size by 15% and cutting its workforce by around 1,700 employees. CEO Vranckx claims SWISS is on track to "realign our company to the changed circumstances and conditions" by 2023.

Substantial improvement in the fourth quarter

SWISS followed its positive earnings in the third quarter to record a much-improved fourth quarter. Operating losses for Q4 were cut to just CHF 36.3 million ($39.4 million), a significant improvement on the CHF 239.1 million ($259.7 million) losses in 2020. SWISS CFO Markus Binkert added, "We were also able to stem the cash drain in the course of 2021 and even generate a positive cash flow for the year as a whole. And in doing so we have laid a firm and promising foundation for SWISS’s financial recovery." The airline's liquidity has also improved substantially over the last year. Restructuring allowed SWISS to make cost savings of CHF 500 million ($542.8 million) for the year. The carrier has not needed to use more than half of its government-backed CHF 1.5 billion ($1.63 billion) credit facility.

Almost six million passengers for the year

SWISS transported close to six million passengers over 2021, a 22.6% rise from the previous year. The airline's available-seat-kilometers (ASK) were up by 22.7%, with SWISS' European market faring a lot better than its long-haul network. The carrier hopes to reach 80% of its pre-pandemic capacity by the end of 2022. Switzerland lifted its quarantine requirement in December in a boost for the travel and tourism industry.