After three years of the pandemic, Japan’s aviation industry is seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. All Nippon Airways has posted its first profit since 2019.

The largest airline in the country has revealed a net profit of 19.54 billion yen ($132 million) for the first half of the financial year of 2022 (from April to September), compared to the same time last year, the airline posted a loss of 98.8 billion yen. The operating revenue has increased by 83.4% year-on-year and the operating expenses were limited to an increase of 38.8%.

“The perseverance and dedication of our employees is propelling ANA Group to overcome the challenging times and we look forward to seeing the continued increase as customers once again visit Japan.” Kimihiro Nakahori, Executive Vice President and Group Chief Financial Officer attributed its success to the employees.

Japan reopened its borders on Oct. 11. ANA looked forward with optimism and revised its forecast. A net profit of 40 billion yen is projected for the financial year of 2022 instead of the initial forecast of 21 billion yen. Also, the operating revenue is expected to be 1,700 billion yen. Japan is expected to be benefited from a weak yen, attracting more foreign travelers to visit the country.

“We were able to capitalize on the recovering trend.” Koji Shibata, CEO of the airline said.

In the first half of the financial year of 2022, the airline recorded five times increase year-on-year for international travel. The airline has increased its services to North America, Hawaii and Asia. However, flight services to Europe remained limited due to the invasion of Ukraine. In addition, the flight operation between Japan and China were limited because of the travel restrictions in China.

Domestic Travel Demand Surged

ANA currently operates 35% of the international travel of the pre-pandemic levels, forecasting to reach 60% of pre-covid levels by the end of the financial year of 2022. However, it could take a year longer to reach pre-pandemic levels.

Peach Aviation, All Nippon Airways’ low-cost carrier also posted the passenger volume by 2.4 times year-on-year. The no-frills airline has resumed flight operations to South Korea and Taiwan.

Japanese have started returning to the skies following the restrictions that were lifted in late March. The policy has paved the way for recovery. The airline saw a surge in travel demand for the Golden Week Holidays (From the end of April to the beginning of May) and summer holidays. The demand from business travelers was also on the rise.

By popular demand, the carrier operated additional flights during the weekends and holidays. The airline said domestic travel is expected to reach the pre-pandemic level by March, currently at 74% of 2019 levels.