Carrier Garners $31.7 Million Net Profit, After 2006 Loss

Israel's national airline, El Al, the national airline of Israel, continues its profit trend, as revenue rose by 16% in 2007 when compared with 2006, totaling approximately $1.93 billion -- the highest revenue in the 60 years that El Al has been in service.

Things were even brighter on the profit side, with a net profit for 2007 of $31.7 million... compared to a 433.9 million loss. Operational profit reached $71.4 million as compared to a loss of $8.5 million in 2006. Revenue for the fourth quarter totaled $524.3 million, an increase of 26%, compared to the same quarter in 2006. The 2007 cash flow totaled $231.2 million, an increase of 136% compared to 2006.

In this day and age, any airline managing a record increase in revenue is cause for celebration... but it's a truly notable achievement by El Al, given a steep upsurge in competition in the skies, the dramatic increase in fuel costs, the sharp drop of the dollar to a low of 3.4 shekels, and geopolitical conditions worldwide... especially conditions in the Middle East.

"The ability of El Al to show profits is the result of the determined effort to reduce expenses while increasing revenue, particularly through the growth engines the airline defined for itself, such as business passengers and increased tourism to Israel," stated Haim Romano, President, El Al Israel Airlines. "All this, together with optimizing the fleet and reorganizing routes brought about this increase and resulted in record growth in revenues and higher load factors."

FMI: www.elal.co.il