Wizz Air and Ryanair have reported further rises in passenger numbers as they continue to recover from the impact of the global pandemic.

Ryanair said it carried 17 million passengers in May, its highest ever number for a single month. Its previous record was 16.9 million flyers in August 2022.

The figure for May is an increase of just over 10% from the 15.4 million who travelled with it during the same period last year.

It comes after the Irish budget airline reported near-record profits of €1.4bn (£1.2bn) for the 12 months to 31 March and set a target to increase passenger numbers by 10% to a total of 185 million this financial year.

Meanwhile, Hungarian carrier Wizz Air said just over five million people flew on its planes last month, a 22.1% rise compared with May 2022.

The set of figures, both released on Friday, provide further evidence to suggest that the airline industry is bouncing back from the hit it took from COVID-19 lockdowns and travel restrictions.

Heathrow Airport recently revealed it had seen a 74% rise in passenger numbers during the first three months of the year, when compared with January to March in 2022.

However it still reported adjusted losses of £139m during the period and warned shareholders were unlikely to receive any dividends in 2023.

The boost for Wizz Air comes despite data earlier this year, which showed it was the worst major airline for flight delays from the UK in 2022.

Last month, the low cost carrier announced further expansion, including adding an 11th plane to its Warsaw base and branching out into Albania.

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Wizz Air is due to release its full-year results next Thursday.

Aarin Chiekrie, an equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Wizz Air delivered some promising results last time out.

“Ticket pricing and demand remained strong across Wizz Air’s routes and, crucially, the group had the capacity to greet it.”

Ryanair said it operated more than 94,400 flights in May.

The company added that over 300 flights were cancelled due to air traffic control strikes in Europe, affecting around 54,000 passengers.

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Ryanair reported a load factor – the percentage of available seats filled – of 94% in May, up from 92% a year earlier.

Wizz Air said it had a load factor of 90.2% last month.

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