Glasgow Prestwick Airport passenger numbers rise

The airport expects passenger numbers to continue to rise as Scots head for their summer breaks

Passenger numbers at Glasgow Prestwick Airport should continue to rise this summer after a solid start to the year, according to its operators.

Almost 112,000 people passed through the terminal last month - 1,000 more than in March.

Volumes were up 7.4% on the same period last year.

The latest figures continue an upwards trend at Prestwick, which opened the year with passenger numbers up by 31% over January 2012.

The airport said summer passenger traffic would be boosted by Ryanair's decision to add more flights to Mediterranean destinations Malaga, Faro and Alicante in July.

Glasgow Prestwick chief commercial officer Graeme Sweenie added: "We anticipate passenger volumes to continue increasing over last year as more Scots head for their summer breaks, with Tenerife, Crete and Malta proving especially popular this year.

"It's encouraging that we have increased seat capacity for July and it's also good to see Ryanair flying their aircraft at, or close to, full capacity."

Prestwick was put up for sale more than a year ago by its New Zealand owners, Infratil.

In January, European airline Wizz Air announced it was switching two of its services from Gdansk and Warsaw from Prestwick to Glasgow Airport.

The carrier said the move to Glasgow would be more "convenient" for existing customers and was a "a step towards future passenger and route growth".

It left Ryanair as the only scheduled passenger airline using Prestwick.