In 2018 – Ryanair and its Austrian subsidiary Laudamotion together flew 139.2 million passengers – eight per cent more than 2017.
The carrier is aiming to reach more the 200 million mark in the near future as it continues to grow its network and is ranked in the top five globally for passengers carried by commercial airlines – only behind the big US four of Delta, America, Southwest and United.
In December alone, the Irish low-cost carrier welcomed 10 million travellers in the month, nine per cent more than the 9.3 million in December 2017. The load factor was 95 per cent.
Austrian subsidiary Laudamotion which Ryanair owns 75 per cent of, flew 0.3 million passengers last month with a load factor of 93 per cent.
Ryanair said it operated over 57,000 scheduled flights in December with over 81 per cent arriving on time, and claims it was “the best punctuality of any major EU airline”.
