(Alliance News) - Ryanair Holdings PLC and Wizz Air Holdings PLC on Wednesday reported a significant increase in passenger numbers for April from a year before, as global travel restrictions in place for a year now show start to be eased.
Irish budget airline Ryanair posted 1.0 million passengers for April, a sharp rise from a mere 40,000 in the same month a year before. The group said it had operated over 8,000 flights with a 67% load factor last month, as the pandemic continues to damp air traffic.
Ryanair's rolling 12-month total was 28.5 million at a 71% load factor. The passenger total was down 79% from 135.1 million in the prior 12 months.
Wizz Air, meanwhile, reported 564,634 passengers in April, up significantly from 78,382 in April 2020. This was at a load factor of 59.2%, down 15.1 percentage points from 74.3% a year before.
During the month, the Central and Eastern Europe-focused airline operated at 22% of its capacity.
Wizz Air's rolling 12-month passenger total was 10.7 million, a 71% drop from 36.8 million the 12 months before, while the load factor declined 30.0 percentage points to 63.6% from 93.6%.
On Tuesday, the European Commission proposed to ease restrictions on travel to countries in the bloc amid progressing Covid-19 vaccination campaigns and lower infection rates.
And the UK government's "green list" of countries to which people can travel without having to isolate for 14 days on their return is expected to be released this week. Reports suggested the list could include about a dozen countries, although some newspapers suggest it could be fewer than 10.
Shares in Ryanair Holdings were marginally lower at EUR16.55 on Wednesday in London, while Wizz Air shares were 1.2% higher at 4,872.00 pence.
By Dayo Laniyan; dayolaniyan@alliancenews.com
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Wizz Air (WIZZ)