Air France-KLM posted a narrower than expected fourth quarter loss this week after capping staff costs and cutting capacity as it awaits for elusive signs of a recovering in passenger and cargo traffic. Europe’s largest airline by revenue reported a fiscal fourth quarter net loss of €505 million (US$698.3 million) and a full-year net loss of €814 million compared with a €1.4 billion full year profit a year earlier, as a result of the ongoing global economic crisis. The group’s cargo division posted an operating loss of €206.8 million (US$286 million) in cargo revenue for its 2008/2009 financial year compared to a profit of €42 million in the previous 12 months. Excluding Martinair, which became a wholly-owned KLM subsidiary at the end of 2008, total cargo revenue for the group was €2.8 billion – a drop of 2.4 per cent over the previous period. Cargo contributed 14.9 per cent of Air France-KLM total airline revenue in the 12 month period to March 31 – down from 15.2 percent the previous year.