reversing an £18.5 million profit from
a year earlier. Revenue generated by the privately held carrier increased 3 percent to £2.7 billion and passenger count edged up 2 percent to 5.4 million. "In an incredibly challenging market, we have managed to grow top-line revenues and fly more customers than last year," according to chief executive Steve Ridgway. "However, with the prevailing uncertainty in the economy, sky-high fuel prices and a 25 percent hike in our air passenger duty fees, converting this sales growth into profit has not been possible."