PASSENGER numbers at budget airline Ryanair have soared by 35 per cent as customers take advantage of its cut-price tickets, the company said.

A series of promotions offering return flights for as little as £4 saw the number of people travelling with the airline rise to 7.4 million in the year to March 31.

More than 70,000 of those passengers use the airline's daily Teesside to Dublin route, 10,000 more than in the previous year.

The increase in passengers carried meant pre-tax profits at the airline took off to £75.2m, 37 per cent above the previous year. Revenue shot up to £295.9m, compared with £224.7m, with the vast majority of passengers - 92 per cent - booking over the Internet.

Ryanair's chief executive Michael O'Leary said the "excellent" results had been achieved despite difficult trading conditions, characterised by higher fuel costs and the impact of the foot-and-mouth disease.

He said: "Despite these negative trading conditions, Ryanair has continued to deliver disciplined growth in fleet, new routes, traffic, revenues and profitability."

Ryanair now operates 55 low-cost air routes across 12 countries, with a fleet of 36 Boeing 737-800 series aircraft.

Mr O'Leary said the airline was boosting passenger numbers at airports across Europe, including London Stansted and its first Continental European base at Charleroi in Belgium.

He hit out, however, at the policy of the Irish Government for increasing costs at Dublin airport.

He said higher access costs for passengers would hit tourism, which would be "catastrophic for a small island nation like Ireland".

Ryanair upped the stakes against its main rivals Go and easyJet with a number of promotions last year.

It offered half a million return flights for just £5 in October, and announced a million cheap seats to 21 European destinations at the beginning of the year, with a rock-bottom net return fare of £4 between Stansted and Dublin.

Mr O'Leary said trading conditions continued to be challenging, but that he was committed to ensuring Ryanair's profitable growth "will continue".

l Ryanair officially ceased its daily flights to the Italian airport of Rimini yesterday, following a dispute over its contract with the airport.