EVA Airways Corp (EVA, 長榮航空) is to add two additional Boeing 777-300ER planes to its fleet, saying it is upbeat about its passenger business in the near term.
The nation’s second-largest carrier yesterday said it plans to lease two 777-300ERs, which may begin service by the end of 2017 on routes to the US and Europe.
“Under the plan, EVA would operate a total of 30 B777-300ERs and have the fourth-largest fleet of the wide-body airliners in the world by the end of 2017,” EVA chairman Chang Kuo-wei (張國煒) told reporters after the company’s annual general meeting.
Asked by reporters about the company's business for the current quarter, Chang said it is challenging for carriers to generate income in the first half of the year, hinting that EVA may remain in loss during the first six months.
From January to March, EVA posted a net loss of NT$909.83 million (US$30.26 million), or NT$0.28 per share.
Chang said he is bullish on seasonal passenger demand in the next two months, adding that net profit generated during the period could help offset the losses in the first and second quarters.
He said that political turmoil in Iraq could have a limited impact on fuel cost, which accounts for about 45 percent of the carrier’s overall operating costs.
Shareholders yesterday approved the decision to not distribute dividends this year, reserving the net profit of NT$747.45 million made last year for future operations.
EVA president Austin Cheng (鄭傳義) was elected yesteday to join the company’s 12-member board, while shareholders also elected three independent board members — the first time in the company’s history — including former minister of transportation and communications Eugene Chien (簡又新) and two accounting professionals, Albert Lou (羅子強) and David Hsu (許順雄).
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