Poland's LOT sees losses, higher fares

WARSAW, Poland -

Poland's national airline, LOT SA, said Thursday that its first-quarter losses more than doubled as a result of soaring fuel costs, and warned that it would probably have to raise ticket prices.

Konrad Tyrajski, a LOT board member responsible for finance, said the airline lost 101 million zlotys ($46 million) in the January-March period. That compared with losses of 44.6 million zlotys ($20 million) a year earlier.

A hike in ticket prices "is very likely" as a result, he said at a news conference in Warsaw.

He did not say by how much fares might rise, and neither he nor LOT president Dariusz Nowak said when they might go up.

Nowak said that the airline was also looking for other ways to control costs to limit the increases on ticket prices. But, he added, for now "cheap tickets are not the best thing for us."
he airline also presented planned changes at its low-cost subsidiary, Centralwings, which has suffered from financial troubles.

Nowak said Centralwings plans to expand its charter connections and put less emphasis on its budget flight operation.

He also said that Tomasz Szymczak - the president since 2006 of Warsaw Airport Services, which manages the capital's airport - would become Centralwings' new director.
Source:forbes.com