Announcing $233 million in net income, Continental
Airlines on Thursday joined in the chorus of second-quarter profits reported by
all legacy carriers but American Airlines. Including American's $10.7 million
net loss, the legacy airlines collectively pulled in nearly $1.25 billion in
profits for the quarter—the most profitable in years.
The last of the legacies to announce earnings, Continental on Thursday reported
passenger revenue increased over the same period in 2009 by nearly 20 percent
on flat capacity, while the carrier also reported that pricing firmed up, as
yield increased 17.3 percent during the quarter over the same period in 2009.
"We like the trends we are seeing, but continue to believe this will be a
long, slow recovery," executive vice president and chief marketing officer
Jim Compton said during the carrier's earnings call on Thursday, pointing to
growing, but still lagging, premium traffic—a big moneymaker for the airlines.
"We're seeing continued, sequential improvement in high yield passengers
since the beginning of the year, but their numbers were still down 20 percent
in June 2010 compared to June 2008, and revenue from high yield passengers is
down about 10 percent in June 2010, compared with 2008," Compton said.