Etihad Airways’ bright profit result against a dark background

Etihad Airways has joined an elite club of airlines in the Middle East, reporting its first ever annual profit. Outside standouts such as Emirates, few of the region's state-owned carriers have been able to report regular profits. Indeed, state-owned carriers in the region typically report heavy losses, when their results are made public at all.

The result is all the more remarkable in Etihad's case, because the airline is not only the fastest growing network carrier in history - it only commenced operations in 2003 and today operates a fleet of 63 mostly widebody aircraft, with another 102 on order - managing to report a modest net profit of USD14 million for 2011, which just bettered its target of breakeven. The result comes as little surprise, as the carrier has been reporting month-to-month operating profits for several quarters and forecasting a breakeven result since early last year.