Virgin Atlantic has announced a pre-tax group operating loss of £80.2 million for the year to February 29, 2012.
Commenting on the results CEO Steve Ridgway said:
“In an incredibly challenging market, we have managed to grow top line revenues and fly more customers than last year.
"However, with the prevailing uncertainty in the economy, sky high fuel prices and a 25 per cent hike in our air passenger duty fees, converting this sales growth into profit has not been possible.”
The loss compares to a profit of £18.5 million for the previous year, and comes despite a 3 per cent increase in revenues to £2.74 billion, and a 2 per cent rise in passenger numbers to 5.4 million.
In recent months Virgin has undergone a £100 million investment in its Upper Class product, including:
- A revamped Upper Class and cabin on new Airbus A330 aircraft
- A new Clubhouse lounge at New York JFK
- A new Clubhouse lounge at New York Newark, to open in November
- A new Upper Class meal service
