A gross cash dividend of 10c per share was declared.
Revenue rose to R5.39bn from R4.16bn and operating expenses rose to R4.76bn from R3.97bn. Profit from operations rose to R330.7m from R10.9m.
Kulula started services on the East London route in March this year and Comair began flights from Johannesburg to Maputo on the British Airways brand in May.
The group's affiliated businesses of flight training, travel product distribution and airport lounges continued to perform well and in line with the prior year. Its catering operation, launched in March last year, had delivered substantial cost savings, it said.
Looking ahead, Comair said it remained cautious regarding the strength of the domestic market, particularly in light of the relatively weak economic growth forecasts. Monthly domestic passenger numbers are still 5% lower than last year and have yet to recover to the volumes seen in 2008.
"The recent demise of two local competitors did great damage to the reputation of the industry with customers, suppliers and bankers alike. State infrastructure suppliers wrote off over R250m in debt, with private-sector suppliers incurred losses of over R100m and the credit card acquiring banks took the brunt of the passenger ticket liability," it said.
The challenge to industry profitability is highlighted by the fact that in the domestic industry, the average ticket price has only increased by 14% since 2001, while operating costs have increased by 163% and the consumer inflation index by 98%.
"Although the aviation industry continues to face obstacles, we remain confident that the recent capital investments have elevated the group to a new level of efficiency. The coming year will be the first full year of operation for the new 737-800s, and we look forward to the delivery of the next four aircraft in late 2015 as well as potential further aircraft orders for delivery post 2018," it said.
Despite the challenges of the industry, Comair said its much improved infrastructure and continued focus on customer service boded well for reasonable results in the year ahead.
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