Aurigny Turns Around Years Of Losses

Aurigny has returned a profit of £6M for 2022 despite warning it could lose around £1.4M.

The airline was bought by the States 20 years ago to ensure the Heathrow Guernsey route was maintained, when BA announced it was pulling out at short notice.

Since expanding into a regional airline, it has turned in losses year after year.

In 2015, the States recapitalised it to the tune of £25M to end high interest repayments on debts.

It continued making losses after this, and needed far more States money to allow it to weather Covid.

Until seven years ago, Aurigny operated a diverse fleet of aircraft including Trislanders, Dorniers, ATRs and an Embraer 195 jet, bought new, with custom engines, in 2014.

Airline economists generally suggest that operating more than one or two aircraft types adds cost, as pilots have to be trained and used on specific aircraft types, and spares and maintenance costs increase because more parts need to be held.

CEO Nico Bezuidenhout has pushed the increased use of ATRs as they are cheaper to run.

This, among other measures, has steadily reduced operating costs and now Aurigny has turned a predicted £1.4M loss for 2022 into a £6M profit.

Fleet simplification is expected to continue, when Alderney's runway is extended to allow the use of ATRs instead of the Dorniers the airline bought new in 2016 and 2017.

What isn't clear yet is the future of the Embraer. It's more expensive to run than the ATRs yet it is the airline's flagship aircraft and is used on the Gatwick route and to fly islanders further afield to a variety of Spanish destinations.