BUDGET airline easyJet carried 2.4 million passengers last month as it benefited from new routes and extra demand during the school holidays.

The figure represented a 25 per cent increase on the same month last year, when the half-term break fell in November, and came despite challenging market conditions.

The carrier's load factor - how full its aircraft were - climbed by 1.5 per cent to 87 per cent.

High oil prices and competition have put the airline under pressure this year, but easyJet, which operates flights from Newcastle International Airport, has overcome this by changes to its network, launching 18 routes last month to destinations including Geneva, Madrid and Venice.

It has also cut flights to Swiss financial centre Zurich and reduced capacity to Copenhagen and Amsterdam as part of a programme to cut costs.

Chief executive Ray Webster described the airline's performance last month as solid.

He said: "Our low-cost business model remains robust and we continue to capitalise on it."

EasyJet said last month that it expected pre-tax profits for the year to be more than £60m, 16 per cent up on last year and higher than the £52m it predicted in June.

The airline plans to increase the number of aircraft in its fleet by about 16 per cent next year - less than the 24 per cent rise previously planned.

The group, which is due to report annual results later this month, recently became the centre of takeover speculation after Icelandic investors Icelandair Group took a ten per cent stake.