BERLIN, Germany – DEUTSCHE Lufthansa AG’s net loss widened in the first quarter as the carrier faced a strike by pilots, higher fuel costs and expenses from consolidating stakes in other airlines, the company said yesterday.

Lufthansa, Germany’s biggest airline, reported a net group loss of euro298 million (US$394 million) for the January-March period — compared with a loss of euro267 million a year earlier. Its operating loss increased to euro330 million from euro44 million.

However, group revenue increased to euro5.8 billion from euro5 billion, and the company pointed to “positive demand trends in the cargo and passenger businesses”.

“Overall performance to date has further strengthened the executive board’s expectations of achieving a positive operating result higher than last year’s,” Lufthansa said. It did not offer a specific figure.

Lufthansa, based in Cologne, owns or holds significant stakes in airlines including Swiss International Airlines, Austrian Airlines, JetBlue of the US and Britain’s BMI.

The company said one-time costs that weighed down first-quarter earnings included the first-time consolidation of Austrian Airlines and Britain’s BMI, increased fuel costs, the effects of an exceptionally severe winter and a strike by pilots in February.

Lufthansa and a union representing its pilots have taken their dispute over pay and job security to arbitration.

The company’s full first-quarter report is due today.

Yesterday’s brief statement made no reference to any potential earnings fallout from last month’s shutdown of most of European airspace due to fears over ash from an Icelandic volcano — an event that falls in the second quarter.