EasyJet passengers are undaunted by downturn

People are still flying in their millions and are prepared to pay extra to do so, easyJet is claiming.

Britain's biggest airline said today it carried 4.1 million passengers in June, nearly a fifth more than a year ago.

While much of that has come from flying more services around Europe, the budget carrier, which is Gatwick's largest operator, was able to report that even with the extra aircraft and services, its planes flew on average fuller than 12 months ago, recording a "load factor" of 86.9%. Even more importantly for easyJet's bottom line, the airline indicated that it has successfully put up fares to offset the worst ravages of the oil price.

The rprice of crude has soared to more than $140 a barrel and is threatening to wipe out many carriers' profits this year.

"Total revenue per seat continues to improve," the airline said.

Encouragingly for those airlines fearing passenger usage may slump, easyJet added: "To date nearly 70% of seats for the second half of the year have been sold."

Broker Credit Suisse said that it indicates demand is holding up this summer and that general lower consumer sentiment is not impacting on either demand or price for easyJet.

The easyJet report follows less encouraging news from British Airways, which reported declines of more than 3% in passenger numbers in June, including first and business class cabins where it makes most of its profits.