Norwegian Air clocked up an increased level of 20.6 million passengers in 2023 despite December schedules being affected by winter storm Pia.
The Scandinavian carrier saw annual carryings rise by 16% over the previous year as capacity grew by 18%.
Carryings in December of 1.3 million was described as being “close” to the level achieved in the same month in 2022, although the load factor was six percentage points higher at 83.6%.
Punctuality last month was affected by storm Pia and the share of flights departing within 15 minutes of scheduled time was 70.4%. However, 93% of all flights arrived on schedule or within one hour of scheduled arrival time.
The airline operated an average of 65 aircraft in December.
Chief executive Geir Karlsen said: “Winter storm Pia challenged our operations a few days prior to Christmas, but thanks to the relentless effort and meticulous planning by colleagues across the business, we managed to add several extra flights and get passengers home in time for their Christmas celebrations.
“With 1.3 million passengers in December, a total of more than 20 million passengers chose to travel with us in 2023.
“Our load factor has increased significantly from December 2022, and I am happy to see these solid results.
“It is also encouraging to see that the positive booking trend we saw through 2023 seems to continue into 2024.
“Our customers are now planning and booking their next travel adventure with many taking advantage of our new year’s sale that was launched recently.”