Interview: A stringent cost structure is vital for expansion: Jazeera Airways CEO

Interview: A stringent cost structure is vital for expansion: Jazeera Airways CEO

Earlier this year, the IATA’s semi-annual report presented a humble financial forecast for the next two years for the airlines industry, still in recovery from the pandemic but also facing systemic challenges such as the war in Europe and climate change. The overall trend has been to heavily reduce costs. For Rohit Ramachandran, CEO of Kuwait-based Jazeera Airways, this has always been second nature to budget airlines. Budget airlines should therefore stick to their cost structures, no matter the economic situation, Ramachandran told Zawya in an exclusive Q&A.

In the EU, even under the current geopolitical and economic circumstances, we have seen budget airlines bounce back with resilient revenue models. How has it been for Jazeera?

Jazeera is actually quite true to the LCC [low-cost carrier] business model and we are quite disciplined when it comes to cost control. We just focus on getting people from one place to the other at the lowest cost possible, and since we already have a tight control on our cost structures, we are able to generate good financial results even in times of adversity when compared to full-service carriers. This is why, over the last two decades, budget airlines have consistently turned out to be