Ryanair hits record with 34% jump
BUDGET airline Ryanair showed passengers are continuing to fly towards the no-frills option today. The Dublin-based operator carried 1.25m people on its aircraft last month, 34% up on a year ago.
The shares jumped 12p to 373 1/2p, although the increase represents a slowdown on May's 44% year-on-year growth.
Ryanair broke through the one million barrier last August and June's figure sets another new record for the company. The airline said 91% of its passengers booked their tickets over the internet, while its planes were 88% full. After first taking to the air 16 years ago, the airline now has a network of 76 routes across 13 countries.
It has aggressively cut prices and last month put two million seats on sale offering flights at just £6.45 from Ireland to the UK and Europe. Earlier this month, the group posted pre-tax profits of £111.4m for the year to 31 March, from £79.7m the 12 months before.
BA on Wednesday posted a 13.1% drop in traffic for June. It blamed soft economic conditions and stay-at-homes caused by the World Cup and Jubilee. Ryanair's discount rival easyJet is due to publish its June traffic figures on Friday.
