CHICAGO, (Reuters) –Southwest Airlines Co reported Thursday its first quarter profit in 2 years. This was due to a rebound in holiday travel prior the Omicron epidemic. The company expects that it will be profitable by 2022.

Texas-based Omicron Coronavirus is expected to depress revenues and increase costs. This will cause a quarter loss for the Texas-based carrier. However, the company is optimistic that it will be profitable during the remainder of the 2022 quarters as well as for the whole year.

Although leisure travel is more comfortable in February and January than in normal years, Southwest claims that the Omicron variation has caused further declines in bookings.

The drop in business and leisure travel will result in a 330 million increase in its revenues in the second half of the quarter.

Bob Jordan, incoming chief executive, said that the carrier is optimistic about revenue and bookings for March. It expects profitability when it returns to profitability.

Jordan said that COVID-19 case trends are trending down, and the worst seems to be over,” Jordan who will become the sixth CEO of the company next month.

Adjusted basis, Texas-based airline reported a profit in December of 14 cents per diluted share, as compared to a loss last year of $1.29 diluted share. Refinitiv analysts polled expected that the airline would report a profit average of 7 cents per shares.