Continental Airlines and
United Airlines on Thursday reported third-quarter profits of $367 million and
$473 million, respectively, though management of the merged carrier said the
recovery in corporate travel is not as strong as they had hoped.
Both carriers saw
double-digit percentage increases in revenue, with United's consolidated
revenue per available seat mile up 18.3 percent from the same quarter last year
and Continental's consolidated RASM up 19.8 percent.
United executive vice
president and chief revenue officer Jim Compton would not detail the carriers'
corporate-specific revenue and demand figures, but said management "saw
continued improvement in corporate business versus last year" and
attributed revenue improvement to higher average fares thanks to more
aggressive management of closer-in bookings. "We'd like to see the volumes
be even stronger," Compton said of corporate demand.
"We remain cautiously
optimistic about revenue trends heading into the fourth quarter," Compton
said. "We think the trends that we've experienced this year are in line
with our belief that this is going to be a long, slow recovery. Early
indications from our corporate accounts indicate that they agree with this
characterization. We are seeing some recovery in fares, but the number of
corporate travelers is still lower than we'd like it to be. However, several
recent surveys indicate that corporate travel volumes will increase in
2011."
The two carriers, which
closed their merger at the beginning of this month to form the new United
Airlines, reported third-quarter earnings separately, but management discussed
results on one earnings call Thursday.