An easing of travel restrictions is starting to show through in passenger numbers though airlines are still cautious about calling a recovery.
Ryanair PLC (LON:RYA) said it carried 1.8mln passengers in May, compared to just 70,000 a year ago, with planes 79% full.
On a twelve-month rolling basis, passengers carried dropped by 75% to 30.2mln from 121mln.
Wizz Air PLC (LON:WIZZ) reported the number of passengers travelling had risen to 833,000 in May from 207,000 a year ago, with its planes 66% full.
József Váradi, Wizz Air’s chief executive, said the pick-up in passenger numbers had come later than expected and this would be another year of transition for the airline.
Wizz Air would make another loss in this financial year if flight restrictions were not lifted soon and permanently, he added.
The Hungarian carrier posted a loss of €567mln in the year to March just ended, though it increased the size of its fleet and also the number of its bases where it operates to 43 from 25 before the pandemic.
Váradi said this quarter it would run at 30% capacity with the intention of being back at full service in the financial year 2023.
Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary yesterday also called for an easing of restrictions in Europe.
He wants Grant Shapps to include all EU countries in the next revision of the UK’s green list so UK holidaymakers can travel "restriction-free to the beaches of Spain, Greece and Italy".
“There is no justification for the UK government to delay the removal of all travel restrictions for those who have been fully vaccinated when research from Public Health England has demonstrated that two doses of the C-19 vaccines are highly effective against the Indian variant,” he wrote in a letter to the transport secretary.
Shares in Wizz Air dropped 1.7% to 4,791p while Ryanair eased 0.4% to €17.05.