Aurora Airline

Performance indicators

2023: Revenue growth by 13% to RUB 25.65 billion

Aurora Airlines in 2023 increased revenue by 18% compared to 2022 - to 25.65 billion rubles. The carrier's net profit during this time increased 1.7 times, to 3.45 billion rubles. Such data are contained in the reporting under RAS, which was published in early April 2024.

As Interfax notes with reference to Aurora's financial documents, the company's revenues in 2023 were record-breaking. The previous maximum in revenue dated 2019 (21.8 billion rubles), in net profit - 2022 (1.99 billion rubles).

source = Aurora Telegram channel

In 2023, the cost of sales of Aurora amounted to 23.3 billion rubles (+ 16.1% compared to the previous year), gross profit - 2.35 billion rubles (+ 42.2%). Other revenues in 2023 increased 2.3 times compared to 2022 and reached 5.8 billion rubles, and other expenses increased 3.5 times (to 2.45 billion rubles). Management costs in 2023 exceeded 1.35 billion rubles, an increase of 16.7% compared to a year ago.

In 2023, Aurora Airlines, according to its own data, transported 1.3 million passengers, which is 16% more than a year earlier. Passenger traffic in the commercial segment on domestic Russian airlines in 2023 increased by 12%, to 945.1 thousand passengers. On interregional socially significant routes under the federal subsidy program, Aurora Airlines, together with partners, transported 418.8 thousand passengers at the end of 2023, which is also 16% higher than the indicators of passenger traffic under this program for 2022.

Summing up the results of 2023, Aurora also noted that during this period two new socially significant directions were added to the airline's route network - from Vladivostok to Kurilsk (Iturup Island) and from Khabarovsk to Amurzet (Jewish Autonomous Region). As a result, the airline's route network by the end of 2023 covered all 11 subjects of the Far Eastern Federal District.^[1]

2021: Increase in traffic by 34%, to 1.69 million passengers

In 2021, Aurora Airlines transported about 1.69 million passengers, which is 34% more than in 2020. The air carrier announced such data on January 17, 2022.

According to the statistics presented, in 2021, 1.46 million passengers used Aurora flights in Russia, which is 45% higher than a year ago. International destinations accounted for 22.4 thousand passengers.

During 2021, Aurora completed 17.6 thousand flights (an increase of 8% by 2020), including 17.1 thousand on domestic airlines (an increase of 1.1 times). Passenger turnover in January-December 2021 amounted to 1.49 billion passenger-kilometers, and production flight reached 32.9 thousand hours. Mail and cargo in 2021 was transported 6.4 thousand tons, which is 2.6 times less than in 2020.

Aurora Airlines in 2021 increased transportation by a third

The main aviation event of 2021, according to the carrier's press service, was the creation of a single Far Eastern airline (TWO) on the basis of Aurora Airlines and several other regional carriers to ensure transport accessibility in the Far Eastern Federal District. In 2021, Far East residents could purchase tickets for 20 interregional socially significant routes at a reduced price. 1.23 billion rubles were allocated from the federal budget to subsidize Aurora flights. In 2022, it is planned to allocate 5.9 billion rubles for these purposes, the number of air routes provided will be increased to 30.

On socially significant routes within the Sakhalin Region, in the Primorsky and Khabarovsk Territories in 2021, 180.8 thousand passengers were transported (in 2020 - more than 152 thousand people).

By the end of 2021, the airline's fleet has 20 aircraft, including nine A319s, eight DHC-8 and three intra-regional DHC-6 Twin Otters.^[2]

History

2020: Aeroflot sells 51% of Aurora to Sakhalin authorities for 1 ruble

On December 3, 2020, it became known about the sale of a 51 percent stake in Aurora, owned by Aeroflot, for a symbolic amount. The largest air carrier in the Far East is transferred to the government of the Sakhalin Region, which becomes the sole owner of the company.

The first stage is the additional purchase of shares owned by Aeroflot into the ownership of the region. There will be a symbolic cost of 1 ruble, in fact, just a transfer, - said the head of the Ministry of Transport of the Sakhalin Region Valery Spichenko during a discussion of the budget in the regional Duma.

Aeroflot sells 51% of Aurora for 1 ruble, the air carrier passes to the Sakhalin authorities

According to him, as a result of the transaction, the region will receive an increase in federal funding, which will block funding for interregional routes, as well as funds for updating the fleet of aircraft, including the purchase of small aircraft for local lines.

As Interfax notes, earlier the sale by Aeroflot of a controlling stake in Aurora in the Sakhalin Region was discussed in the context of a project to create a Far Eastern airline with Russian aircraft. According to the federal Ministry of Transport, the deal could be the first stage of the project, at the second stage, the rest of the subjects of the Far Eastern Federal District will be invited to enter the company's capital.

Aeroflot was also not going to participate in the creation of this Far Eastern company. Its ex-head and current Minister of Transport Vitaly Savelyev said that this is a "regional company" that the group manages "separately," while Aeroflot, Pobeda and Russia "occupy their niches." The group's new strategy until 2028, approved on July 16, 2020, does not say anything about Aurora, RBC notes. The national economic recovery plan, which was developed by the Ministry of Economic Development, says that it is planned to invest 30 billion rubles in the creation of a single Far Eastern airline.^[3][4][5]

Notes