Ryanair entered the autumn period with a 38% hike in passenger carryings as half-term holidays boosted numbers.
Europe’s largest no-frills carrier flew 15.7 million passengers in October against 11.4 million in the same month last year.
The increase came as the airline operated more than 88,560 flights in the month.
Ryanair reported “strong school mid-term” bookings for October as its load factor rose by ten percentage points year-on-year to 94%.
The October performance gave the airline a rolling 12 month passenger total of 157.4 million – up by 178% on the previous pandemic affected period.
Rival Wizz Air carried 4.5 million passengers in October, up 52% year-on-year.
This gave the eastern and central European budget carrier a rolling 12 month total of 42.6 million passengers, a rise of 136%.
Wizz Air UK saw Luton airport passenger numbers hit the 15 million mark since the opening of the base in 2017.
The carrier now operates 69 routes to 30 countries from Luton.