Ryanair has achieved record passenger numbers despite the fact that France was experiencing multiple flight cancellations due to industrial action.
Low-cost airline revealed 17.4 million passengers flew with them last month. This is a 9.0% increase from the 15.9 millions who travelled on their planes in June 2022, and around 400,000 more than in May.
The customer satisfaction levels would have been higher had French air traffic control not staged a number of walkouts in protest against President Emmanuel Macron’s controversial pension reforms which included raising retirement age by two year.
Popularity: Ryanair announced that 17.4m passengers flew with them on their planes in June 2022, an increase of 9% over the 15.9m travellers who travelled on the group’s planes in June 2022.
Ryanair has’regrettably canceled’ more than 900 flight in June. This affected about 160,000 passengers. However, the airline still operated 96,250 total flights.
Dublin-based company cancelled about 400 trips in June, when French unions launched a day of national action. Around 130 additional cancellations were made on June 29, when airport workers staged a 34-hour walkout.
The French air traffic controllers have organized 60 strike days in this year, causing major disruptions to thousands of travelers.
French law requires that domestic flights continue to operate during strikes, but international flights cannot fly over France.
The Covid-related travel restrictions have helped to boost the passenger volume of air carriers.
Russ Mould said that many travellers are used to flying problems, and yet they continue to book flights.
“Airlines will appreciate that, even though they would prefer to provide a smoother experience for their customers.”
In the 12-month rolling period up to June 2023 173.4million passengers have flown on Ryanair. This is a 29% increase over the 134.5million passengers recorded in the previous year.
Many airlines and airports anticipate their busiest ever summer, despite the fact that more industrial action will be expected in Europe this summer as countries struggle with rising costs of living.
Ryanair announced in May that it would operate its “largest schedule ever” during this season. This will cover nearly 2,500 routes with more than 3,000 flights daily.
After being severely affected by the lack of staff, industrial action, and airport capacity limitations last year, Wizz Air, a Hungarian competitor, announced that it was “ready to deliver a record summer traffic”.
The Budapest-headquartered company also revealed its traffic figures for June on Tuesday, telling investors that 5.3 million people travelled with the firm, almost a million more than in the same month last year.
The group announced in June that it would be adding 10 new routes to its Albanian network. Flights from Tirana will begin to Birmingham, Edinburgh, and Liverpool during the winter.
Wizz Air’s shares were up 1.5 percent at £28.36 in the morning. Ryanair shares at Euronext Dublin fell 0.4 percent to €17.25.