Tiger Airways turns profitable in third quarter

Tiger Airways reported a net profit of 2 million Singapore dollars (1.6 million U.S. dollars) in the three months ending Dec. 31, 2012, the company said on Thursday. The financial year of the company ends at the end of March. The company, which has units in Singapore and Australia and stakes in airline companies in Indonesia and the Philippines, had been once troubled by the impact from a suspension of the operations of its Australian unit in July 2011 as well as high fuel costs. The budget carrier announced a loss of 17.4 million Singapore dollars for the October-December period in 2011. Tiger said the turnaround came on the back of a 47 percent rise in group revenue to 248 million Singapore dollars, driven mainly by an increase in the number of passengers carried. "We are encouraged by the turnaround in this quarter," said Koay Peng Yen, the company's chief executive officer.