Easyjet suffered a drop in revenue at the end of last year due to the Paris terror attacks and bombing of a passenger jet in Egypt.
The airline reported that for the three months ending December 31, revenue per seat was down 3.7 per cent compared to the previous year – offsetting strong revenue per seat performance in October.
Easyjet said the “tragic” events resulted in lower demand and yield in November and December but forward bookings for the second quarter are showing a marked improvement.
According to its quarterly update, passenger numbers increased by 8.1 per cent to 16.1 million, as capacity grew by 7.3 per cent to 17.8 million.
Chief executive Carolyn McCall said the airline would continue to focus on reducing costs this year, and increase profits and dividends.
“Easyjet’s excellent customer proposition combined with low oil prices has allowed it to offer lower fares which has driven an 8% increase in passenger numbers in the first quarter,” said McCall.
“The Easyjet customer-centric strategy of giving passengers low fares to primary airports continues to be executed well. This year we will consolidate that with a relentless focus on cost reduction which is already delivering. This will ensure that Easyjet continues to win and continues to grow revenue, profit and dividends.”
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