Wizz Air passenger numbers grow further in March

Low-cost airline Wizz Air said in an update on Wednesday that it transported 4,778,980 passengers in March, marking a 12% increase compared to the same period last year.

The FTSE 250 company said its capacity reached 5,260,659 seats, up 13.6% year-on-year, making for a slight decline in the load factor to 90.8%, down 1.3 percentage points.

Looking at the broader rolling 12 months ended 31 March, passenger numbers soared 21.4% year-on-year, reaching 62,015,792.

Capacity experienced an 18.3% rise, with 68,813,271 passengers carried during the period, achieving a load factor of 90.1%, up by 2.4 percentage points.

Operationally, Wizz Air resumed flights to Tel Aviv, Israel, initiating operations from six bases, with plans for further route resumptions in April, May, and June.

Additionally, it announced special flights tailored for football enthusiasts travelling to the UEFA European Football Championship in Germany this summer.

The airline deployed all-female crews on selected flights on International Women’s Day, and hosted its inaugural 'Women on Air' event.

On the environmental front, the airline said it consistently reported the lowest carbon dioxide emissions per passenger-kilometre among its competitors, recording 52 grams per passenger-kilometre for the rolling 12 months ended 31 March.

However, for the month of March, carbon dioxide emissions slightly increased by 1.3%, totaling 51.5 grams per passenger-kilometre compared to the same period last year.

At 0818 BST, shares in Wizz Air Holdings were up 0.94% at 2,140p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.