Aer Lingus reports 5% fall-off in passenger numbers

Aer Lingus has reported a fall-off in both long-haul and short-haul passengers for November.

The airline said total flown passenger numbers, including those on its regional operations, fell by 5 per cent to 728,000 last month compared with the same month last year.

Short-haul passengers dropped to 647,000 in November, a 4.7 per cent drop on the same month last year.

Long-haul passenger numbers fell to 81,000 last month, which was 6.9 per cent down on November last year.

The airline said its passenger load factor - how many seats it fills on each flight - fell by 3.3 points on to 73.3 per cent in November compared with last year.

The airline’s short-haul flown load factor was 68.6 per cent, a decrease of 1.9 points on November 2012, with capacity down by 3.5 per cent. Long-haul flown load factor was 80 per cent, a decrease of 5.7 points on November 2012, with capacity 0.8 per cent up on the previous year.

“November passenger numbers are in line with our expectations,” the airline said.

In its most recent trading statement, Aer Lingus said: "We do not expect any improvement in the short haul environment for the rest of 2013 which remains characterised by heavily discounted fare offerings across Europe. "

“The 2013 outlook on long haul remains positive with the exception of some weakness expected in November”.