New routes and aggressive pricing have helped Ryanair report a 45 per cent increase in passenger figures for the 12 months to April 2004.
Passenger figures released today show that the budget airline carried 2.1 million passengers in April this year and managed to fill 82 per cent of its total capacity. Internet sales now comprise 97 per cent of seat sales.
Ryanair has sold 23.8 million tickets or "earned seats" in the 12 months to the end of April. Earned seats include seats that are flown whether or not the passenger turns up as, under Ryanair's "no-show" policy, customers are not entitled to change flights or seek a refund.