India’s leading private sector airline, Jet Airways has reported a disappointing net loss of Rs. 298 crore during the fourth quarter till March 2012.

The company had reported a net loss of Rs. 124 crore in the same quarter of the previous year. The airline has reported losses in the previous five quarters consecutively. On the other hand, the company reported an operating profit (EBITDAR) of Rs. 369 crore during the quarter mainly due to improved yields.

Nikos Kardassis, chief executive, Jet Airways said that the quarterly results have been affected by rupee depreciation and high fuel prices, but the lowering of capacity in the industry has boosted fares and resulted in improved yields. The rising fuel prices resulted in the company’s fuel bill increasing 42.4 per cent to Rs. 1,822.5 crore compared to Rs. 1,279.7 crore in the year-ago period.

As for the whole year, Jet reported a loss of Rs. 1,236 crore for the year till March 31, 2012. The total revenues during the whole financial year rose 15.9 per cent to Rs. 14,994.1 crore. The fuel costs rose 51.8 per cent at Rs. 6,630.7 crore from Rs. 4,366.7 crore while EBITDAR margin fell to 7.6 per cent.

Mr. Kardassis said, “In this hour of rapid change in market dynamics, we continue our endeavour to enhance guest experience through unique marketing initiatives to enhance guest experience through unique marketing initiatives and social media tools. As part of a strategic rebranding exercise, Jet Airways had consolidated its low-fare service under the JetKonnect brand to simplify the group's service position and enhance brand recall.”