Tough competition and fare discounts have been great for travellers but not for South-east Asian carriers. A glimpse into the books of 20 airlines -- both budget and full-service -- showed that more than half made operating losses in the first nine months of the year. Based on data compiled by an industry think-tank, the Centre for Aviation (Capa), Malaysia's AirAsia was the top performer, followed by Singapore Airlines (SIA) in second place. Of the other Singapore carriers on the list, SilkAir was among the nine carriers that made money but Tigerair and SIA Cargo both reported losses. Jetstar Asia was not included because it does not report quarterly numbers, though the airline had earlier reported profits for the six months to June 30. Despite the turbulence in this part of the world, the good news is that the airlines did better than last year and are expected to improve even further next year, said the Capa report.