Aer Lingus passenger traffic falls

Aer Lingus saw passenger numbers fall by more than a quarter in April, compared to the same month a year earlier, according to new figures.

The airline attributed the decline in numbers flying to the disruption caused by the volcanic ash clouds from the Eyjafjallajoekull volcano in Iceland. As a result of the ash cloud, a large number of flights to and from Ireland were cancelled.

Aer Lingus estimated the cost of flight cancellations last month cost it about €5 million per day.

Total passenger numbers in April were 689,000, a decrease of 27.1 per cent compared to the same month a year earlier.

Short haul passengers totalled 626,000 last month, a 26.1 per cent year-on-year decline while long haul passengers totalled 63,000, a 35.7 per cent decrease on April 2009.

Aer Lingus’ overall load factor - a measure of how well the airline is filling seats - was 75.8 per cent last month, an increase of 1.2 points compared to April 2009, with capacity decreasing by 29.7 per cent.

Short haul load factor was 77.per cent, a decrease of 0.5 points, with capacity down 22.6 per cent.

Long haul load factor was 73.5 per cent, an increase of 3.1 points on 2009, with capacity decreasing by 40.3 per cent.