Cheap Flights Airlines Clean Up in 2009
Figures published today have revealed that cheap flights airlines have been the overall “winners” in a travel industry struggling with the effects of the global economic downturn.
Associations representing European air carriers published figures showing passenger numbers for 2009 – and it was the no-frills airlines who reaped the benefit of tighter household holiday budgets.
Figures released by the European Low Fares Airline Association (ELFAA) revealed that low-cost carriers increased passenger numbers by a total of 13 million – an 8.7 per cent increase – largely due to European holidaymakers increasingly seeking out the cheapest flights on the internet.
Cheap flight pioneers Ryanair and easyJet are ELFAA members and have certainly not been shy when it comes to increasing the number of routes that they offer to destinations such as Greece, Spain and Turkey – and even longer-haul flights to Morocco and the Middle East.
Their success is in contrast to the more established airlines, such as national flag carriers, which suffered an overall 5.8 per cent decrease in the number of passengers last year. Figures from the Association of European Airlines (AEA) revealed that national airlines saw a drop of 20 million passengers throughout 2009 compared to the previous year, partly due to a severe constriction in business travel by companies also dealing with the recession.
AEA members carried some 326 million passengers between them last year, while ELFAA members flew 162.5 million people around the world. This led the organisation to claim yesterday that its members are now responsible for 33 per cent of all scheduled flights in Europe.
Budget Airline News posted by 
on 03 March 2010
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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-1255089/easyJet-Ryanairs-cheap-flights-beat-Credit-Crunch.html#ixzz0h7UEGbjC
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