SriLankan Air Profit Rises while posting operating loss on fuel costs

SriLankan Airlines, said full-year profit rose fivefold after airplane sales outweighed surging fuel costs and the effect of the country's civil war.

Net income rose to 4.9 billion rupees ($45 million) in the year ended March 31 from 862 million rupees a year earlier, SriLankan said in a statement today. Revenue for the Colombo, Sri Lanka-based airline rose to 80 billion rupees from 69 billion rupees. SriLankan earned 5.5 billion rupees from the sale and leaseback of three Airbus SAS A340 aircraft.

The profit from selling the aircraft masked a 588 million rupee operating loss caused by a surge in spending on fuel for the war-torn nation's flag carrier.

The airline's management changed hands in April with the expiry of a 10-year agreement with Emirates.

The government has a 51.05 percent stake in the carrier, while Emirates owns 43.63 percent and the rest is held by employees.

Emirates is shopping its stake for $150 million, but has not found a buyer yet. Emirates paid $70 million for its share in 1998, its only investment in another carrier.