Ryanair traffic and load factor grow in February

Low-cost carrier Ryanair said on Wednesday that both traffic levels and load factor had increased during February and also unveiled its largest-ever Summer schedule from its three London airports.

Ryanair said traffic surged from 500,000 in February 2021 to 8.7m last month, while the group also operated 53,660 flights with a load factor 86% in February 2022, up from 78% twelve months ago.

The Irish company also launched its most extensive Summer schedule from Gatwick, Luton, and Stansted on Wednesday, with 14 new routes to the likes of Naples, Madeira, and Stockholm.

"With over 100 based aircraft for S22, Ryanair's total investment in the UK amounts to over $10.0bn, supporting 3,000+ highly paid aviation jobs and over 35,000 indirect jobs across 19 UK airports, driving the UK's post-Covid tourism and jobs recovery," said Ryanair.

However, the group added that despite its "biggest ever investment", Downing Street had missed an opportunity to accelerate the recovery of tourism and jobs for Summer 2022 by delaying the reduction in air passenger duties until 2023.

As of 0940 GMT, Ryanair shares were down 1.33% at 13.76 each.