Wizz Air passenger numbers up 22% in May

Central and Eastern European-focused low-cost airline Wizz Air reported a rise in passenger numbers for May.

Passenger numbers were up 22.2% to just over 2.4m, as the load factor - which gauges how full the planes are - ticked up to 91.1% to 90.1%.

On a rolling 12-month basis, passenger numbers increased 20.3% to 24.7m, while the load factor rose to 90.5% from 88.3%.

Late last month, the airline posted a record profit for the year to the end of March despite "challenging" conditions including low fares and increasing fuel prices.

Full-year profit rose 28% to €246m on revenue of €1.57bn, up 10% from the year before, as passenger numbers jumped 19% to 23.8m. Meanwhile, the load factor pushed up to 90.1% from 88.2%.

Wizz said there were no signs of demand weakness on routes to and from the UK despite Brexit, adding that the negative translation effect on British pound revenues due to Brexit in full-year 2017 was estimated at €17m, which was absorbed by the rest of Wizz Air's route network.