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ATLANTA --

Discount carrier AirTran Airways is flying high as some of its bigger rivals struggle to turn a profit.

Parent company AirTran Holdings Inc. on Wednesday posted a profit of $17.1 million, or 11 cents a share, for the final quarter of 2009. That's compared to a loss of $121.6 million, or $1.03 a share, in the same period of 2008.

Revenue rose 1.5 percent to $598.4 million from $589.4 million.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters were expecting adjusted earnings of 3 cents a share on sales of $585.4 million.

For the year, AirTran's profit of $134.7 million was a record. That was equivalent to 95 cents a share, compared to a loss of $266.3 million, or $2.44 a share, for 2008. Revenue fell to $2.34 billion from $2.55 billion in 2008.

Larger rivals like Delta Air Lines and American Airlines lost money in 2009.

AirTran, based in Orlando, Fla., has low costs that allow it to cut ticket prices and still make money. It ended 2009 with $543 million in unrestricted cash on hand.

Annual fuel costs fell $516 million from 2008. But fuel prices have risen in recent months. AirTran has hedged 40 percent of its 2010 fuel requirements with benefits beginning at $60 per barrel. Oil was trading in the $74 range on Wednesday.

AirTran's average fare was $90.75 in the fourth quarter, compared to $96.14 a year earlier.