October passenger figures continue to fly for major operators

Ryanair reported another increase in passenger traffic for October, with a total of 13.1 million customers.

This 11% increase included 500,000 for Lauda, the Austrian airline the Dublin-based carrier recently acquired.

The load factor, or number of available seats sold, for Ryanair during the month was 96%, and 89% for Lauda. No year-on-year comparative figures were released.

Ryanair said it was forced to cancel just over 300 flights in October due to a five-day airport handler strike at Brussels Zaventem, some adverse weather, and continuing air traffic control staff shortages in the UK, Germany and France.

The carrier operates 37 routes from Manchester Airport, and 25 from Liverpool John Lennon Airport.

Rival airline easyJet posted a 14.1% jump in passenger stats for October, flying 8.58 million customers.

However, a load factor of 90.5% represented a 2% drop on the same period last year.

Rolling figures for the past 12 months to October show an overall 10.6% increase in passenger numbers, to 89.513 million so far, and a 92.7% load factor, which is a 0.1% fall.

Routes operated by easyJet from Liverpool John Lennon Airport currently total 29, while the carrier flies 62 from Manchester Airport.

Meanwhile, Hungary-based Wizz Air, which flies seven routes from Liverpool John Lennon Airport, carried 3.06 million passengers during October, which was a 14.8% jump on the previous year. A 94% load factor was a 1.22% improvement.

Figures for the past 12 months to October revealed the airline flew 33.16 million passengers, which is a 20.6% improvement, and it achieved a load factor of 92.1%, up by 0.7%.

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