Wizz Air passengers increased 24.7% year-on-year from 2.66 million in December 2018 to 3.32 million in December 2019 on a stronger load factor of 89.4%, up 0.6 percentage points on the same month last year.

Ryanair, meanwhile, saw group-wide December passengers numbers increase 9% from 10.3 million to 11.2 million on a load factor of 95%.

The group’s acquisition of Lauda contributed an additional 200,000 passengers, with Ryanair itself carrying an extra 700,000 passengers – an increase of 7% on December 2018.

Over the rolling 12-month period to 31 December, Wizz Air’s passenger numbers increased 17.7% from 33.8 million to 39.8 million on a load factor of 93.6%, up 1.2 percentage points.

Ryanair posted 12-month rolling passenger numbers for the same period of 152.4 million, up 9% from 140.2 million, on a load factor of 96%.

Wizz also reported a 2% year-on-year decrease in emissions per passenger to 59.5 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometre.

The Romanian budget airline cited new routes from its bases in Yerevan, Armenia, and Paris Orly airport, and six new routes across the rest of its network in its December 2019 traffic round-up.