Europe’s EasyJet, one of the leading low-cost airlines, is reporting numbers that may seem hard to understand, with its prices 31% higher in this year’s first quarter compared to last year but with strong growth in sales as well.
The airline says that it carried 15.6 million passengers in the quarter compared to 11.6 million the year before, pushing its seating from an average of 78% to 88%.
EasyJet blames the price rise on rising costs, especially for fuel, and its CEO refuses to predict when or whether the prices will come down, but says that “Forty percent of all the fares that we have on sale right now actually sit below £50/€57.”