Austrian Airlines boosts third-quarter revenue and operating profit

Austrian Airlines increased revenue and operating profit in the third quarter, but says challenging conditions in Austria continue to hinder long-term planning, ORF reported.

Revenue rose 13 percent year on year to €851 million from July to September 2026, while operating profit, measured by EBIT, climbed 19 percent to €140 million. The airline carried 4.89 million passengers, up 3 percent, although its load factor fell 1.4 percentage points to 86.8 percent.

Chief Executive Annette Mann said the airline had controlled internal costs and shifted capacity originally planned for the Middle East to tourist destinations across Europe. Routes to places including Mallorca and Nice were well received, she said.

Austrian Airlines said punctuality improved by 2.8 percentage points for departures and 2.5 points for arrivals. It operated 99.2 percent of its schedule as planned and said it was Europe’s most punctual airline in September.

For the first nine months of the year, revenue rose 7 percent to €2.07 billion, but adjusted EBIT fell 37 percent to €48 million. Mann renewed criticism of the aviation tax, saying structural costs in Austria made sustainable long-term planning difficult. Eight provincial governors have recently called for the tax to be scrapped or reduced.

Record-high kerosene costs have put some routes, particularly very short-haul services, under review. The Vienna-Graz route was removed at the end of the summer schedule, and capacity for the 2026/27 winter schedule has been cut by 5 percent compared with the previous year.

Austrian Airlines also said new aircraft are in short supply, with Boeing and Airbus running years behind on some deliveries. The airline described talks with the Austrian government on securing its base in the country as being on track, and said they were important to advancing the renewal of its long-haul fleet.