16.6 PERCENT PASSENGER GROWTH IN AUGUST KEEPS RECORD BREAKING YEAR ON COURSE
(Posted 16th September 2018)
In August Brussels Airlines boarded 137,282 more passengers compared to the same period last year, representing a growth of 16.6%.
The airline’s Seat Load Factor increased by 1.5 percentage points to a total of 86.5%.
The pressure on the ticket price remains high, however.
During the month of August, Brussels Airlines welcomed 962,439 passengers on board its flights, an increase of 16.6% compared to August 2017.
The strongest passenger growth was registered on the African network (+31.4%), thanks to the addition of many new holiday destinations in North Africa in cooperation with Thomas Cook, Neckermann and Pegase.
The number of passengers travelling on European flights rose by 15.3%. On the Asian flights, 11.4% more customers chose to fly Brussels Airlines. The number of people traveling to the Middle East (Tel Aviv) increased by 9.4%. Compared to the same month last year, 8.7% more customers were registered on the North American network.
Brussels Airlines operated 6.9% more flights, but the Available Seat-Kilometers (ASK) increased even more (+19.9%) due to the replacement of the AVRO jet fleet (100 seats) by larger Airbus aircraft of up to 180 seats and the fact that the average flight distance has grown by 5% due to the addition of several holiday destinations in North Africa.
The Seat Load Factor climbed from 85% in August last year to 86.5% in August 2018 (+1.5pp.). Thanks to its increased offer, Brussels Airlines was able to continue offering competitive fares and attract even more customers. This means, however, that the pressure on the yield remains very high.
The Cargo Load Factor decreased slightly (-4.5 percentage points) to an average of 61.5%, due to the fast growing flight offer. The transported cargo volume amounted to 3,690 tons. The Revenue Ton-Kilometers (RTK) grew by 19.3%.
These statistics do not include the passengers on board of the many charter flights Brussels Airlines operates on behalf of tour operators.
| August 2018 | August 2017 | Difference in % | |
| Flights | 7,283 | 6,810 | 6.9% |
| Total Passengers | 962,439 | 825,157 | 16.6% |
| — Passengers Europe | 762,962 | 661,718 | 15.3% |
| — Passengers Africa | 124,045 | 94,376 | 31.4% |
| — Passengers North America | 42,132 | 38,776 | 8.7% |
| — Passengers Middle East | 23,863 | 21,812 | 9.4% |
| — Passengers Asia | 9,437 | 8,475 | 11.4% |
| Available seat-kilometers (ASK) | 2,114,052,328 | 1,763,039,541 | 19.9% |
| Revenue Passenger-Kilometers (RPK) | 1,828,286,017 | 1,498,576,922 | 22.0% |
| Passenger Load Factor (%) | 86.5% | 85% | 1.5 pp |
| Available Ton-Kilometers (ATK) | 246,949 | 211,548 | 16.7% |
| Revenue Ton-Kilometers (RTK) | 202,225 | 169,475 | 19.3% |
| Cargo Load Factor (%) | 61.5% | 66% | -4.5 pp |
These results are based on figures currently available
Brussels Airlines operates daily Airbus A330 flights between the European capital city and Entebbe in Uganda, with six of these services routing via Kigali in Rwanda while the remaining flight operates via Bujumbura in Burundi.
