Leisure travel passenger numbers in summer 2007 were down by 5% as major operators appeared to cut capacity in line with demand – but revenues only fell by just over 2%.
Figures from Ascent-MI’s Leisure Travel Monitor show a decline of around 620,000 passengers in summer 2007 compared with summer 2006.
But commercial director Sarah Smalley said revenues for summer 2007 had declined less – at just over 2% – than UK passenger numbers, with the LTM service indicating prices had remained stable.
It is common knowledge extra capacity in the market is often sold at a loss as operators attempt to fill empty aircraft seats at the expense of margin.
The revenue that has come out of the market as a result of the decrease in passenger numbers equates to around £244 per passenger, according to Ascent-MI.