Aeroflot expects 'strong' operating profit in Q3

VLADIVOSTOK. Sept 14 (Interfax) - Aeroflot expects a "strong" operating profit in the third quarter of this year, the Russian airline's CEO, Sergei Aleksandrovsky said.

"We plan to end the third quarter with a strong operating profit," Aleksandrovsky told reporters at the Eastern Economic Forum. He did not disclose forecasts for other financial results.

He also said that low-cost carrier Pobeda will be the only airline in the Aeroflot Group to pay the windfall tax and the payment will total about 650 million rubles.

Aeroflot posted an IFRS net loss of 102 billion rubles for the first half of 2023, compared to a net profit of 73.7 billion rubles in the same period of 2022. However, before exchange rate revaluations, the group's net loss shrank by 26% to 20.1 billion rubles from 27.2 billion rubles a year earlier.