Kuwait’s Jazeera Airways has posted an increase of more than 229 per cent in profits in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2012.

The increased profits come in spite of the privately-owned airline having to suspend its routes to Syria in the final quarter of last year due to the increased violence and instability in the country.

Net profits stand at KD3.6m ($12.6m) after tax for the first quarter, with operating revenue standing at KD14.7m and operating profit standing at KD4.5m.

Following the cancellation of the airline’s Syria service, Jazeera worked to deploy its excess capacity to other routes in its network. It achieved a 70 per cent load factor for the first quarter of this year, the load factor reflecting the proportion of seats occupied on every flight.

Passenger numbers rose by five per cent in the first quarter with the airline transporting approximately 4,000 passengers every day.

The airline is continuing to expand its fleet. It has 15 A320s on order with 12 aircraft already delivered.  A further aircraft is to be delivered next month and an additional aircraft will be delivered in the fourth quarter this year. The final aircraft will be delivered next year.