Ryanair says its load factor, which measures how many seats are filled, rose to 78% in December from 74% in the same month a year earlier.
801,000 passengers were carried, up from 609,000 in December 2000. Ryanair says it carried over 10.2 million passengers last year, giving a load factor of 80%. 91% of initial seat sales were made through its web site www.ryanair.com.
Earlier it was announced that Britain's Advertising Standards Authority had reprimanded Ryanair for two of its advertisments for cheap fares, which were described as misleading.
In an adjudication published today, the authority asked the low fares airline to be more precise about its offers in future, including details contained in the small print.
In one advertisement, Ryanair said a particular offer was open for every seat on every flight, before adding in the small print that weekend supplements applied.
In the other case, a person who responded to an e-mail offer for a cheap flight was told that it also applied only to midweek.
Meanwhile, Ryanair also confirmed today that it had submitted a second complaint to the EU Competition Commissioner Mario Monti and the EU Transport Commissioner Loyola De Palacio about Lufthansa.
Ryanair claims the German airline is involved in 'dirty tricks' in an attempt to prevent Ryanair not just advertising in Germany, but exercising its right to freedom of speech in Germany.
