Wizz Air carried a record number of passengers last year, as travel demand rebounded dramatically from pandemic-era lows.
Some 60.3m people flew on the Hungarian airline in 2023, the highest ever yearly total and a near third increase on 2022. Shares jumped nearly five per cent on the announcement.
Covid-19 lockdowns decimated passenger traffic as carrier’s were forced to ground fleets worldwide.
But as restrictions lifted, consumers have begun nourishing a pent-up demand for holidays, booking flights in droves despite a cost-of-living crisis and the threat of recession in major economies.
Wizz Air increased its capacity by 23 per cent and introduced 10 new routes from the UK as it operated over 59,000 flights, an 11 per cent jump on 2022.
Zsuzsa Trubek, Wizz Air’s corporate communication manager, said: “We are proud to have finished 2023 with record passenger numbers, an ever-evolving network, advanced fleet and enhanced operational performance.
“The UK is a key market in the Wizz Air network, and we are looking forward to growing with further investments in 2024.”
The record numbers will give Wizz new wings at the turn of the year.
Shares in the carrier were hit by supply chain issues at a key aircraft engine supplier in the latter of half of 2023. Capacity forecasts for this year were cut by 10 per cent as a result.