Lufthansa profits soar over low oil prices

Lufthansa announced on Thursday that low oil prices had sent its profits soaring in 2015. Figures release by the airline showed that net profit rose to €1.7 billion ($1.9 billion) in 2015, from just €55 million a year earlier.

It has also emphasized that booming passenger business was also involved in its gains last year which was marked by the tragic crash of a plane from its subsidiary Germanwings as well as a series of strikes by its pilots and crew.

Carsten Spohr, the head of Lufthansa, described 2015 as an "emotionally challenging year" due to the crash of a Germanwings passenger jet in March that killed 150 people on board.

"2015 was a very, very sad year. It was a year of extremes," he told the group's annual earnings news conference.

"Emotionally, it was the most difficult in the company's history, but at the same time, it was one of the best in Lufthansa's financial history," Spohr said.

Lufthansa says underlying or operating profit grew by 55.2 percent to €1.8 billion and revenues were up 6.8 percent at €32.1 billion.

"2015 was a good year in economic terms," Lufthansa chief added, as reported by AFP. "The doubling in the passenger airlines' result is not only due to lower fuel costs, but also to the favourable developments in our passenger volumes and to our capacity discipline.”

An A320 Airbus jet belonging to Germanwings crashed in the French Alps on 24 March 2015, apparently a deliberate act on the part of co-pilot Andreas Lubitz who had a history of depression.

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