2009 News - Flights - Monarch traffic rises by 8% on scheduled services in January

03 02 2009

Award-winning low fares airline Monarch saw in the New Year in style with increases in passenger numbers and load factor during January compared to the same period last year.

The current cold snap has seen the British public leaving the UK in their droves with the Canary Islands of Tenerife and Lanzarote proving to be the top choices for a winter sun break.

Monarch’s passenger statistics for scheduled services during January 2009:

Passenger numbers (1):

January 2009: 180,060

January 2008: 166,073

% change: +8.42%

Load factor (2):

January 2009: 75.77%

January 2008: 73.50%

% change: +2.27%

Internet sales percentage (3):

January 2009: 88%

January 2008: 91%

% change: -3%

Overall, for both scheduled and charter services, Monarch carried a total of 334,851 passengers during January 2009

1. Represents the number of earned seats flown by Monarch. Earned seats include seats that are flown whether or not the passenger turns up because once a flight has departed a no-show customer is not entitled to change flights or seek a refund.

2. Represents the number of passengers as a proportion of the number of seats available for passengers.

3. Represents the percentage of total seats sold via www.monarch.co.uk.

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Notes to editors:

Monarch operates scheduled flights to Spain, Gibraltar, Portugal and Cyprus from Birmingham, London Gatwick, London Luton and Manchester airports. In addition to year-round low fares, Monarch also offers a unique range of tasty hot and cold meals onboard with prices from £3.00. Seats can be pre-booked at £6 per one-way flight to avoid the last minute free-for-all experienced on some other airlines, or from only £15, extra-legroom seats are available, which offer up to six inches of extra space.

Passengers travelling on scheduled flights can also avoid the queues at the airport and take advantage of online check-in which is available between seven days and 4.5 hours prior to departure.

In addition to flights, Monarch also now offers a huge range of great value holidays, accommodation options, car hire and travel insurance, all of which can be booked via monarch.co.uk.

For further information or to book Monarch flights, Monarch Holidays or Monarch Hotels, please visit www.monarch.co.uk.