Italian flag carrier Alitalia on Thursday reported its first operating profit since its takeover by an alliance of Italian business interests last January.
The airline said operating earnings in the third quarter came to 15 million euros (22 million dollars) after showing losses in the previous two quarters.
Sales came to 838 million euros in the July to September period, during which Alitalia carried 6.3 million passengers on flights that were on average 74 percent full, compared with 51 percent in the first quarter and 65 percent in the second.
The carrier's share rose to 53 percent of the Italian domestic market from 51 percent in the first half of the year and to 20 percent of the international sector from 19 percent.
Alitalia, after struggling financially, merged with Italy's number two carrier Air One and began operating in its new form on January 13.
The company in the first nine months of the year sustained an operating loss of 258 million euros.
