EasyJet, Europe's biggest budget airline, said yesterday aggressive cost control would help ease the impact of weaker fares and it could still generate strong demand despite a difficult market environment.

The airline also said passenger numbers in March soared by one-third, but its first-half loss would be made worse by the timing of Easter and a 10.7 per cent fall to £37.44 sterling (€54.63) for its average fare for the half to March 31st.

"Although current forward bookings are robust, the overall profile of the last quarter's revenue, and hence the full-year outcome, will not become apparent for at least several months," said EasyJet, which has traditionally posted a first-half loss.

The company, which operates short-haul flights within Europe, said the benefits of the cost savings, including the fact that it was closing its call centre at London's Stansted airport, would not show until later this year.

It says it carried 1.713 million passengers in March, up 32.2 percent on the 1.296 million it carried in the same month last year, based on combined figures with Go.