PLAY airlines carried 187,960 passengers in August 2024, marking a 1.8% increase from August 2023 when the airline transported 184,926 passengers. The load factor in August 2024 was 91.6%, setting a record for the highest load factor in a single month for PLAY. This represents a 2.7% increase from the 88.9% load factor recorded in August last year.
PLAY operated 32 destinations in August 2024, with 22 of these achieving a load factor exceeding 90%. In addition to the record load factor, PLAY also achieved an outstanding on-time performance of 91.5%, significantly higher than its main competitors. PLAY has therefore been the most punctual airline operating departures from Keflavík International Airport 13 months in a row.
Among the passengers flying with PLAY in August, 25.9% were departing from Iceland, 35.6% were flying to Iceland, and 38.5% were connecting passengers. PLAY continues to grow its share in the local market, with 48,694 passengers flying from Iceland in August 2024. This marks a notable increase from August 2023, when 41,112 passengers flew from Iceland, representing a 18.4% growth in the local market.
New Destinations and Positive Impact on Icelandic Society
In August, PLAY launched ticket sales to two new destinations: Faro in Portugal and Aalborg in Denmark. Faro will be PLAY's fourth destination in Portugal, while Aalborg will be its third in Denmark. Additionally, PLAY has announced an increase in weekly services to Lithuania, expanding from one flight per week to two, starting in 2025.
PLAY was also recently recognized as the airline that Icelanders believe has the most positive impact on Icelandic society. This recognition came from a survey conducted by the Icelandic company Prósent, which gathered opinions from 15,000 Icelanders about the societal influence of various companies. PLAY earned an impressive score of 73, placing it at the top of the list among Icelandic airlines and landing in seventh place overall among all companies in Iceland.
Einar Örn Ólafsson, CEO of PLAY Airlines:
"A record month for PLAY in terms of load factor is something we are extremely proud of. It shows that our services are well received in our markets and that demand has picked up. This achievement is especially notable as August can be a tricky month for sales due to the return to normal routines after summer vacations. Despite that, we managed to increase both our passenger numbers and our load factor.
We're particularly pleased to see the growth in our 'to Iceland' traffic year-over-year, as well as the significant increase in passengers flying from Iceland. This demonstrates that our local market is happy with our services, and our decision to offer a wide range of sunny destinations to Icelanders is paying off.
On top of this, our operations team did a fantastic job maintaining an on-time performance of 91.5%, once again making us the most punctual major airline flying from Keflavík International Airport. Looking ahead, we're excited to see our forward bookings trending ahead of last year, and I'm looking forward to the coming months with my team at PLAY."
