Air Partner reveals strong performance

Air Partner, the global aviation services group that is best known for its long-standing air charter broker business, has reported strong results for its financial year that ended in 31 January.
Air Partner made an underlying profit before tax of £4.3m, an increase of 64% over the previous financial year, while its freight business doubled its profit, performing – the company said – particularly well in the UK and German markets.
Richard Smith, head of products at Air Partner, was delighted with the company’s freight results.
“We have moved well in the right direction,” he explained, attributing the fine performance to the “lots of energy and effort that go into providing excellent services to our customers”.
Key to performance in all parts of the Air Partner operation – both functional and geographical – last year was the development of its ‘Customer First’ strategy.
This is all about focusing on the needs of the customer and delivering exactly what each client values, Smith explained, and it has been greatly appreciated by Air Partner customers.
Rolled out progressively, it remains an ongoing strategy at the heart of the Air Partner offering.
Mark Briffa, Air Partner CEO, remarked that the company’s overall performance was “testament to all of those who work at Air Partner and shows that by putting our Customer First we can deliver good trading and positive momentum, the benefits of which we are already seeing in the new financial year”.
Another reason for the company’s positive freight results was the ‘Red-Track’ technology introduced by Air Partner to improve transparency for customers looking to track and trace their cargo charters.
“It has really added value,” Smith said. “It is a differentiator for us, and is especially important in the time-critical charter area of business.”
Last year’s positives in the freight charter business have continued into 2016, Smith informed. Humanitarian cargo charters have been in demand, as have those for time-critical automotive and aerospace-related charters, although those related to oil and gas exploration are being understandably affected by the stubbornly low oil price.
“The economic outlook is uncertain but we feel that we’ve made a good start to the year. We’re in a good place,” Smith concluded.