NEW DELHI, May 16: Air India (AI) is expected to return to the black in 1997-98 with a net profit of Rs 91 crore.

The airline has suffered losses for two successive years and ended 1996-97 with a net loss of Rs 280 crore. AI had last recorded a profit of Rs 40 crore in 1994-95.

AI has also budgeted an operating profit of Rs 145.35 crore in 1997-98 as against an operating loss of Rs 252.09 crore last year.

The operating revenue of the airline is expected to go up by 20.5 per cent to Rs 4043.85 crore in 1997-98 from Rs 3477.49 crore in 1996-97.

Comparatively, the rise in operating expenses will be lower at 8 per cent. Operating expenses are expected to touch Rs 4043.85 crore in 1997-98 as against Rs 3729.58 crore last year.

The 1997-98 budget of the airline, which was approved by the board of directors on Thursday, envisages a yield of 23.82 per cent, a passenger load factor of 69.1 per cent and aircraft utilisation of 8.97 per cent per day. Overall load factor for the airline will be 65.7 per cent, an increase of 3.1 per cent over last year's load factor of 60.3 per cent.

Top-rung officials of the airline, who addressed a press conference in the capital on Thursday, revealed that Air India is yet to sign crucial productivity-linked wage agreements with its pilots and cabin crew. "These negotiations are protracted and take time" said Brijesh Kumar, managing director, Air India.

Answering questions, Kumar said that the board of directors had not addressed the crucial issue of induction of MCLR aircraft for AI.

It is expected that the issue will be taken up in the next board meeting.Bids for the Rs 3,700 core MCLR contract has been evaluated by two committees. While the H M Shahul sub-committee appointed by the former board had favoured the Airbus A330-400, a technical evaluation committee set up by AI has favoured the purchase of Boeing 777 aircraft.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.