Air-India has reported a turnaround in the third quarter of the current financial year, notching up a net profit of Rs 55 crore (Rs 550 million) against a net loss of Rs 45 crore (Rs 450 million) at the end of the first six months.

The profit for the nine months ended December 31, 2003, is around Rs 10 crore (Rs 100 million), A-I chairman and managing director V Thulasidas said.

A-I's nine-month ended net profit is however around 50 per cent lower compared with the corresponding nine-month ended net profit of around Rs 20 crore (Rs 200 million).

The SARS epidemic and disruption of operations due to a strike called by the Indian Pilots' Guild hurt A-I's financial health in the first half.

Thulasidas said the company's performance had essentially taken a beating in the first quarter. "With a healthy recovery in the third quarter, we expect to end the year on a good note." Meantime, the company today announced bi-weekly direct flights between Ahmedabad and London to be added to the airline's summer schedule, effective March 28.

This will translate into the national carrier adding 100,000 seats per year on its India-London-India route using leased Boeing 747-400 aircraft.

Additionally, the frequency of flights to Nairobi and Dar-e-Salaam is being increased to three flights a week from the current two.

A weekly flight from Kochi to Salalah is also being added.

"While the airline's fleet acquisition plan gets finalised, we would be inducting leased aircraft to be deployed in the new routes that we are identifying. We would be taking on lease around four aircraft every year," Thulasidas said.