Norwegian Air's February traffic rose ten-fold year-on-year

Norwegian Air had a ten-fold increase in February passenger traffic compared to the same month last year and bookings rose to their highest since the COVID-19 pandemic reached the Nordic region two years ago, it said on Friday. The company is closely monitoring the impact from the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent spike in oil prices and thus on fuel costs. The budget airline said it carried 643,000 passengers last month, up from 61,000 in February 2021, and the load factor of its planes in operation rose to 81% in February from 38% a year ago. Norwegian last week reported a full-year profit for 2021 in a turnaround from losses suffered the previous year, and said booking trends point to busier travel ahead for Europe. “When travel restrictions were lifted, we immediately noticed increased demand for flights. We will have a comprehensive summer program this year to meet this demand,” CE Geir Karlsen said. “The company has noted a very positive development in future bookings over the last period, and monitors closely the uncertain situation in Europe, the turmoil in the financial markets and the change in oil prices,” Norwegian said. The pandemic sent the airline into bankruptcy proceedings from which it emerged in a slimmed-down version in May with no long-distance network and a smaller fleet, and with a sharp reduction of its debt.<br/>