# Emirates Group Profit Falls 66% as Fuel Costs and Weaker Passenger Traffic Bite

> MKNIRALO — Business — AVIATION & EARNINGS

- Published: 2026-11-06
- Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
- Byline: Rayan — Aviation Business Observer
- Byline disclosure: Rayan is a house editorial byline maintained by MKNIRALO, not a claim of an independently verified individual. It does not imply airline-industry employment, financial credentials, personal interviews or access to nonpublic information.
- Author profile: https://mkniralo.com/authors/rayan/
- Tags: Emirates Group, Aviation Industry, Airline Earnings, Fuel Costs, Air Cargo, Gulf Aviation
- Cover image: https://mkniralo.com/images/emirates-group-half-year-profit-falls-66-percent-2026.svg

Emirates Group earned AED 3.6 billion after tax in the first half of 2026–27, down 66%. The airline carried 22% fewer passengers even as cargo revenue rose.

A sharp fall in profit does not mean Emirates Group stopped making money. On November 5, the Dubai aviation group reported positive earnings for April–September 2026, but far below a record year-earlier comparison. The figures reveal a more complicated picture than a single percentage: a partially restored flight network, fewer passengers, higher fuel costs, a freight business bringing in more revenue and a still-substantial cash balance. The first task is to keep the airline’s numbers separate from those of its parent Group.

## A profitable first half, but far below the record comparison

The Emirates Group said on November 5 that it earned AED 3.6 billion in profit after tax during the first six months of its 2026–27 financial year, a 66% fall from the equivalent period a year earlier. Revenue declined 12% to AED 66.2 billion, versus AED 75.4 billion in the prior first half. The reporting window was April 1 through September 30, 2026—not the calendar-year first half or the full financial year. The Group includes Emirates airline and the aviation-services business dnata.

That difference in scope matters. The Group reported AED 4.1 billion in profit before tax, also down 66%; that is not its AED 3.6 billion after-tax result. Emirates airline alone earned AED 3.3 billion after tax, likewise down 66%, on revenue of AED 56.9 billion, down 13%. Its pre-tax profit was AED 3.7 billion, down 68%. Each figure describes a different entity or accounting measure. The comparison also starts from an unusually strong first half in 2025–26, so the steep percentage decline should not be mistaken for a loss.

Sources:
- [Emirates Group announces half-year profit for 2026-27, despite full six-month impact of regional conflict and high fuel costs](https://www.theemiratesgroup.com/media-centre/emirates-group-announces-half-year-profit-for-2026-27-despite-full-six-month-impact-of-regional-conflict-and-high-fuel-costs/) — The Emirates Group
- [Emirates Group posts $980 million H1 net profit despite regional challenges](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/emirates-group-posts-980-million-h1-net-profit-despite-regional-challenges-2026-11-05/) — Reuters
- [Emirates airline posts $903m in half-year profit despite regional disruption](https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/aviation/2026/11/05/emirates-airline-posts-903m-in-half-year-profit-amid-regional-disruptions/) — The National
- [Emirates Group records Dh4.1 billion profit despite regional aviation turmoil](https://gulfnews.com/business/aviation/emirates-group-reports-dh662b-revenue-dh41b-profit-in-first-half-of-2026-27-1.500736676) — Gulf News

## Flights returned, but passenger demand did not fully follow

Emirates airline carried 21.8 million passengers between April and September 2026, 22% fewer than in the corresponding six months of 2025. The 21.8 million count belongs to the airline, not to the wider Group. The carrier said that by September 30 it was operating 91% of its pre-disruption network, serving 150 airports across 78 countries and territories. Restoring a route network, however, does not automatically restore the number of seats offered or sold.

Its available seat kilometres—a standard measure of seat capacity multiplied by distance—fell 17% year on year. Revenue passenger kilometres, which reflect paying passenger traffic weighted by distance, dropped 25%. The average passenger seat factor declined to 72.0%, from 79.5% a year earlier. Taken together, these figures show that operations had resumed across much of the network while traffic remained weaker relative to capacity. The Group said intermittent airspace restrictions and closures across the region tested operations, while government travel advisories reshaped consumer choices.

Sources:
- [Emirates Group announces half-year profit for 2026-27, despite full six-month impact of regional conflict and high fuel costs](https://www.theemiratesgroup.com/media-centre/emirates-group-announces-half-year-profit-for-2026-27-despite-full-six-month-impact-of-regional-conflict-and-high-fuel-costs/) — The Emirates Group
- [Emirates Group posts $980 million H1 net profit despite regional challenges](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/emirates-group-posts-980-million-h1-net-profit-despite-regional-challenges-2026-11-05/) — Reuters
- [Emirates airline posts $903m in half-year profit despite regional disruption](https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/aviation/2026/11/05/emirates-airline-posts-903m-in-half-year-profit-amid-regional-disruptions/) — The National
- [Emirates Group records Dh4.1 billion profit despite regional aviation turmoil](https://gulfnews.com/business/aviation/emirates-group-reports-dh662b-revenue-dh41b-profit-in-first-half-of-2026-27-1.500736676) — Gulf News

## Fuel costs widened the gap between revenue and profit

Fuel expenses were an especially important pressure point. Emirates said its fuel uplift, a measure of fuel taken on for flights, fell 12% as operations contracted. Yet fuel costs before hedging gains increased 60% compared with the previous first half. The company attributed much of the squeeze to sharply higher jet-fuel prices amid the regional conflict. Fuel accounted for 34% of the airline’s operating costs, even as its total operating costs, including fuel, declined 2% in a smaller flying programme.

The carrier also reported AED 7.1 billion in gains from its fuel-price risk-management strategy. Those gains reduced the reported net increase in fuel costs to 13%, rather than the 60% pre-hedging rise. A hedge can soften exposure to higher market prices; it does not restore cancelled flights, refill empty seats or ensure identical protection in the future. It would be misleading to take the gain figure, subtract it mechanically from after-tax profit and present the result as an independently verified alternative earnings statement.

Sources:
- [Emirates Group announces half-year profit for 2026-27, despite full six-month impact of regional conflict and high fuel costs](https://www.theemiratesgroup.com/media-centre/emirates-group-announces-half-year-profit-for-2026-27-despite-full-six-month-impact-of-regional-conflict-and-high-fuel-costs/) — The Emirates Group
- [Emirates Group posts $980 million H1 net profit despite regional challenges](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/emirates-group-posts-980-million-h1-net-profit-despite-regional-challenges-2026-11-05/) — Reuters
- [Emirates airline posts $903m in half-year profit despite regional disruption](https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/aviation/2026/11/05/emirates-airline-posts-903m-in-half-year-profit-amid-regional-disruptions/) — The National
- [Emirates Group records Dh4.1 billion profit despite regional aviation turmoil](https://gulfnews.com/business/aviation/emirates-group-reports-dh662b-revenue-dh41b-profit-in-first-half-of-2026-27-1.500736676) — Gulf News

## Cargo was the counterweight, not a complete replacement

The airline’s freight business told a different story from passenger travel. Emirates SkyCargo moved 1.2 million tonnes during the half-year, down 1% year on year, but cargo revenue rose 52%. Emirates attributed that divergence to tighter airfreight capacity during the conflict and greater demand for air transport as maritime shipping faced disruption. The results illustrate why tonnage and revenue should not be treated as interchangeable indicators: less freight can still produce more revenue when rates or shipment mix change.

The company also reported receiving five new Boeing 777 freighters and expanding dedicated freight services. Those additions point to investment in cargo capacity, but the reported revenue increase does not prove that cargo made up for all the lost passenger business or establish a standalone cargo profit figure. The Group’s overall revenue still fell, and Emirates airline’s net earnings dropped substantially. Strong performance in one division can cushion a shock without reversing it.

Sources:
- [Emirates Group announces half-year profit for 2026-27, despite full six-month impact of regional conflict and high fuel costs](https://www.theemiratesgroup.com/media-centre/emirates-group-announces-half-year-profit-for-2026-27-despite-full-six-month-impact-of-regional-conflict-and-high-fuel-costs/) — The Emirates Group
- [Emirates airline posts $903m in half-year profit despite regional disruption](https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/aviation/2026/11/05/emirates-airline-posts-903m-in-half-year-profit-amid-regional-disruptions/) — The National
- [Emirates Group records Dh4.1 billion profit despite regional aviation turmoil](https://gulfnews.com/business/aviation/emirates-group-reports-dh662b-revenue-dh41b-profit-in-first-half-of-2026-27-1.500736676) — Gulf News

## Ground services and cash reveal another side of the strain

Dnata, the Group’s airport and travel-services company, recorded AED 11.0 billion in first-half revenue, down 7% from AED 11.7 billion a year earlier. Its profit before tax fell 51% to AED 410 million; after-tax profit was AED 309 million, down 56%. The fall reflects the pressure on airport activity and travel-related services, although the company said activity outside the Gulf helped offset weaker volumes in some operations. These results are distinct from the airline’s figures and cannot simply be added to them to reconstruct consolidated revenue.

The Group closed September with AED 54.1 billion in cash, down from AED 59.6 billion at March 31, 2026. That is a comparison with the beginning of the financial year, not a year-on-year change. The Group said its cash supported aircraft pre-delivery payments and debt obligations, while it also paid the remaining AED 2 billion of an earlier declared dividend. Liquidity on this scale provides room to respond, but a smaller cash balance and weaker profits are separate indicators: neither alone proves financial distress or an assured recovery.

Sources:
- [Emirates Group announces half-year profit for 2026-27, despite full six-month impact of regional conflict and high fuel costs](https://www.theemiratesgroup.com/media-centre/emirates-group-announces-half-year-profit-for-2026-27-despite-full-six-month-impact-of-regional-conflict-and-high-fuel-costs/) — The Emirates Group
- [Emirates Group posts $980 million H1 net profit despite regional challenges](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/emirates-group-posts-980-million-h1-net-profit-despite-regional-challenges-2026-11-05/) — Reuters
- [Emirates airline posts $903m in half-year profit despite regional disruption](https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/aviation/2026/11/05/emirates-airline-posts-903m-in-half-year-profit-amid-regional-disruptions/) — The National
- [Emirates Group records Dh4.1 billion profit despite regional aviation turmoil](https://gulfnews.com/business/aviation/emirates-group-reports-dh662b-revenue-dh41b-profit-in-first-half-of-2026-27-1.500736676) — Gulf News

## The next six months will test the recovery in different ways

Management described its approach to the second half of 2026–27 as measured optimism, while maintaining spending on aircraft and cabin improvements. Emirates said it had received nine Airbus A350 aircraft and completed 12 aircraft cabin refurbishments during the first half. Those are reported operational milestones, not evidence that the investment will deliver a particular profit rebound. As of November 5, no outcome for the six months ending March 2027 had been reported.

For travellers and businesses watching the Gulf aviation market, the important next measures are not a single headline percentage. They include whether passenger traffic recovers faster than capacity, whether seat occupancy improves, how jet-fuel prices and hedging affect actual costs, and whether extraordinary cargo demand persists. The first-half accounts show a company that stayed profitable while bearing markedly higher costs and lower passenger volumes. They do not yet show how quickly either pressure will ease.

Sources:
- [Emirates Group announces half-year profit for 2026-27, despite full six-month impact of regional conflict and high fuel costs](https://www.theemiratesgroup.com/media-centre/emirates-group-announces-half-year-profit-for-2026-27-despite-full-six-month-impact-of-regional-conflict-and-high-fuel-costs/) — The Emirates Group
- [Emirates Group posts $980 million H1 net profit despite regional challenges](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/emirates-group-posts-980-million-h1-net-profit-despite-regional-challenges-2026-11-05/) — Reuters
- [Emirates airline posts $903m in half-year profit despite regional disruption](https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/aviation/2026/11/05/emirates-airline-posts-903m-in-half-year-profit-amid-regional-disruptions/) — The National
- [Emirates Group records Dh4.1 billion profit despite regional aviation turmoil](https://gulfnews.com/business/aviation/emirates-group-reports-dh662b-revenue-dh41b-profit-in-first-half-of-2026-27-1.500736676) — Gulf News

## About this article

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## Sources and further reading

- [Emirates Group announces half-year profit for 2026-27, despite full six-month impact of regional conflict and high fuel costs](https://www.theemiratesgroup.com/media-centre/emirates-group-announces-half-year-profit-for-2026-27-despite-full-six-month-impact-of-regional-conflict-and-high-fuel-costs/) — The Emirates Group (published 2026-11-05) (accessed 2026-11-05)
- [Emirates Group posts $980 million H1 net profit despite regional challenges](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/emirates-group-posts-980-million-h1-net-profit-despite-regional-challenges-2026-11-05/) — Reuters (published 2026-11-05) (accessed 2026-11-05)
- [Emirates airline posts $903m in half-year profit despite regional disruption](https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/aviation/2026/11/05/emirates-airline-posts-903m-in-half-year-profit-amid-regional-disruptions/) — The National (published 2026-11-05) (accessed 2026-11-05)
- [Emirates Group records Dh4.1 billion profit despite regional aviation turmoil](https://gulfnews.com/business/aviation/emirates-group-reports-dh662b-revenue-dh41b-profit-in-first-half-of-2026-27-1.500736676) — Gulf News (published 2026-11-05) (accessed 2026-11-05)