Flydubai fleet expansion dents profits

Flydubai reported a 12 percent decline in profit for 2025, as it invested heavily in its fleet expansion programme.

At the Dubai Airshow in November, the airline placed orders for 150 Airbus A321neo aircraft and 75 Boeing 737 Max jets. During the year, it took delivery of 12 Boeing 737 Max jets, increasing its total fleet to 97 aircraft.

Revenue rose 6 percent year-on-year to AED13.6 billion ($3.7 billion), while profit after tax fell to AED1.9 billion.

“To be splurging on capital outlay like this and still deliver this level of profit is no small feat,” said Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at StrategicAero Research. “Bigger airlines struggle to achieve this sort of financial performance.”

The airline also finalised its retrofit programme, completing eight Next-Generation Boeing 737-800 aircraft and bringing the total number of retrofitted aircraft in the fleet to 25. 

Fuel accounted for a quarter of the carrier’s total costs, down from 28 percent a year earlier.

Earnings before interest, tax depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) was marginally down on 2024 but the closing cash and bank balance was up almost 20 percent to AED5.6 billion.

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Flydubai carried 15.7 million passengers, an increase of 2 percent year-on-year, while 9 new routes were added, extending its reach to 140 destinations. Staffing numbers also increased by 11 percent to 6,763.

“The fundamentals of our business are strong, and we are well-positioned to meet this sustained appetite for both leisure and business travel across our network,” Flydubai CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith said.

Flydubai is owned by the Dubai government and is a sister airline of Emirates Airline.