Norwegian Air Shuttle reported a narrower operating loss of 220 million Norwegian crowns ($24 million) for the first quarter of 2026, down from 611 million crowns a year earlier and better than analyst expectations of 954 million crowns.
The budget carrier, which operates mainly in Europe, benefited from a stronger Norwegian crown, jet fuel hedges, and lower EU Emissions Trading System allowance costs. Aviation fuel expenses dropped to 1.53 billion crowns from 1.97 billion crowns year-over-year. Unit costs rose 6% to 0.83 crowns per seat.
The group carried 5.2 million passengers, with Norwegian handling 4.2 million and subsidiary Widerøe 0.9 million. Norwegian achieved a record Q1 load factor of 87.6%, up 5.2 percentage points from last year, while Widerøe reached 70.2%. Punctuality stood at 78.8% for Norwegian and 87.2% for Widerøe. The fleet totaled 145 aircraft at quarter-end, with liquidity at 14.2 billion crowns. Profit before tax was a loss of 459 million crowns.
CEO Geir Karlsen described demand as encouraging ahead of summer, despite higher ticket prices. Shares rose 6.3% following the results.
Norwegian forecasts significantly higher full-year fuel costs due to disruptions from the US-Israeli war with Iran and the Strait of Hormuz blockade, which have driven jet fuel prices to record highs. Capacity, in available seat kilometers, will increase 5% next quarter.