“This confirms a path that must maintain consistency. This is my appeal and my wish. It should not just be circumstantial, although there is much volatility in this business, but we should at least have a consistent path of improvement and recovery,” he said.
José Manuel Bolieiro was responding to SATAs results in statements to journalists at the headquarters of the Regional Government Presidency (PSD/CDS-PP/PPM) in Ponta Delgada.
The airline Azores Airlines reported losses of 33.3 million euros up to September, according to a statement from the SATA Group, which highlights a 5% improvement compared to the first nine months of 2024.
In the third quarter alone, the company posted profits of 7.8 million euros, up from the 2.8 million euros profit of the same quarter in 2024.
The leader of the Azores Government expressed “satisfaction” with the aviation group’s results but also “realism.”
“I don’t become depressed when partial figures show negative results, nor do I become euphoric with positive numbers. In the case of Azores Airlines, a profitability of 21%, and for [SATA] Air Açores, 23%. This is a journey.”
However, Bolieiro acknowledged that there remains an “issue” with the “accumulated” results of Azores Airlines, the airline undergoing privatization negotiations and which incurred losses of 33.3 million euros up to September.
“In this accumulated scenario, we still have a problem. Now, with every partial improvement, the problem lessens. Our goal is progressively to decrease the problem and make the business profitable and sustainable. This is what we are working on,” he reiterated.
Regarding the stance of the Ponta Delgada Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which warned about the instability due to changes in SATA’s management, the President of the Azorean executive assured that he has “done everything” to ensure “stability.”
“It’s clear that management changes are not favorable. However, despite the change, we can ensure stability. With the change, we may even enhance and upgrade qualifications. That is my expectation,” he stated.
The SATA Group, in a statement, mentioned that the year 2025 “continues to be marked by high competitiveness in the aviation sector, with the North American market more restrained compared to recent years, influenced by geopolitical factors,” and that the company altered its explored routes in the third quarter, favoring domestic operations, which “resulted in an 11% drop in the number of transported passengers and impacted revenue by around 19%.”
The operational costs of Azores Airlines fell by 27% to 89.4 million euros, and EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) improved by 21%, reaching 25 million euros up to September.
The president of SATA’s administration, Rui Coutinho, submitted his resignation on Tuesday, the Government of the Azores revealed to the Lusa agency, which will appoint the financial director, Tiago Santos, to lead the aviation group.
On Thursday, the Ponta Delgada Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIPD) expressed concern over the change in SATA’s presidency, occurring before the completion of the ongoing privatization process.
