Ryanair flies 34% more people

RYANAIR flew 34% more passengers in April as the carrier added routes and cut fares amid a travel slump caused by the Iraq war and SARS.

The passenger count rose to 1.47 million last month from 1.1 million in April 2002, Ryanair said in a statement.

The load factor, or proportion of seats filled, fell one percentage point from the year-earlier month to 79%. That compares with 85% in the year ended April 30 and 78% in March.