IN BRIEF: Ryanair passenger total up again in May despite MidEast war

Ryanair Holdings PLC - Dublin-based budget airline - Reports a 6% annual rise in passenger traffic last month, as the US-Israeli war continues to have little obvious impact on European air travel. Smaller peer Wizz Air Holdings PLC similarly on Tuesday had reported a 26% annual rise in May traffic.

Ryanair says it carried 20.7 million passengers in May, up 5.6% from 19.6 million a year before. This also was up from 19.3 million passengers in April. Ryanair says it operated 114,000 flights in May with a 95% load factor, a key indicator that was unchanged from a year before. In April, Ryanair operated 108,000 flights. On a rolling 12-month basis, Ryanair carried 210.4 million passengers, up 4.2% from 202.0 million a year before, both periods having a 94% load factor.

Ryanair on Tuesday had criticised the EU commission, condemning what it described as an "illegal strike" by Belgian air traffic controllers. The strike, which started overnight Monday, had "forced the short notice cancellation of 100 Ryanair flights to/from Charleroi and Zaventem Airports, disrupting almost 20,000 passengers", the company said.

Current stock price: EUR24.77

12-month change: up 7.6%

By Tom Waite, Alliance News editor

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