The regional carrier still managed to increase passenger numbers by 2.1% for the final three months of 2015 but this was on the back of a 10.1% rise in capacity over the same period.

Flybe said airline ticket prices were also driven lower by increased capacity in the short-haul market as well as lower fuel prices – passenger revenue per seat fell by 6.1% from £49.65 to £46.61 year-on-year.

Despite this, the airline recorded a 3.6% rise in revenue to £128.9 million for the quarter with revenue per sold seat increasing by 1.2% to £67.66.

Chief executive Saad Hammad said: “The tragic events in Paris overshadowed this last quarter and caused a significant hiatus in airline bookings, not just to France, but also on UK domestic and near-continent travel.”

Flybe said it had decided to concentrate on trying to maintain passenger yields instead of selling every seat, which led to a 5.4-point reduction in load factor to 68.9% for the quarter compared to the previous year.

“In this uncertain environment, we decided to protect yields rather than to chase unprofitable marginal revenue,” added Hammad.
 
“As a result, revenue has grown by 3.6%, and this, together with continued reductions in unit costs, reinforces our resilience as a business, now that all legacy issues have been resolved.”

Flybe is increasing its focus on attracting business travellers who tend to book later and pay higher airfares.

“Passenger demand is now slowly recovering and reflecting a later booking profile,” said Hammad.