Ryanair breaks monthly passenger record again despite holiday chaos
Yanair said 63,000 of its passengers were affected by the “still unexplained” technical error that caused chaos over the holiday weekend, but the airline still managed to break its monthly passenger record again in August.
The budget airline carried 18.9 million passengers, an increase from the record 18.7 million in July and 11% more than in August 2022. Flights were 96% full, the same load factor as August 2022.
But 350 of its flights were canceled due to the “computer error,” which still has not been resolved.
The temporary collapse of Britain’s air traffic control system led to the cancellation of 1,110 flights and many more delays on one of the busiest weekends of the year for British air travel, leaving thousands of passengers stranded outside the UK.
National air traffic service bosses are working on an urgent report to find out exactly what went wrong, as aviation chiefs described the mistake as an “embarrassment”.
Meanwhile, rival budget airline Wizz Air carried 6.1 million passengers, up 23.9% year-on-year, with new flights including Luton to Cairo.
Travel companies have gone from strength to strength this year, even as other businesses that rely on discretionary spending struggle with the impact of the cost of living crisis.
Ryanair carried 177.4 million passengers in the last 12 months, up 20% on the previous year. Wizz carried 62.6 million, an increase of 33%.
Ryanair shares rose 0.6% to €16.24 in Dublin today. Wizz shares rose 2.3% to 2,251p.
Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: “Ryanair shares have risen strongly so far this year, driven by robust demand for summer holiday travel post-Covid and a rise in average fares.” While the low-cost airlines have a “Having experienced a very strong and important summer season, the winter could be more difficult as increased inflation and rising interest rates are likely to impact consumer travel spending.”
https://www.standard.co.uk/business/ryanair-breaks-monthly-passenger-record-again-despite-bank-holiday-chaos-b1104613.html Ryanair breaks monthly passenger record again despite holiday chaos
