Cebu Pacific (CEB) did not let a late Easter clip its wings. The budget carrier flew 2.2 million passengers in March, an 18.9 percent jump from a year ago, despite the holiday shift, with domestic and international routes continuing to show strong demand.

Cebu Air, Inc., the operator of the Gokongwei-led airport, informed the stock exchange on Tuesday that seat capacity surged 19.2 percent, while overall seat load factor (SLF) held steady at 81.4 percent, just a hair below last year’s 81.6 percent.

On the domestic front, passenger traffic jumped 20.2 percent, supported by a 17.9 percent rise in seat availability. The load factor climbed to 84.1 percent, showing solid demand in local routes.

International operations also posted double-digit growth, with passenger volume up 15.2 percent on 22.9 percent more seats. However, the SLF declined by 5 percentage points, settling at 74.3 percent.

For the first quarter, CEB flew 7 million passengers, a 26.3 percent increase from 5.5 million in the same period last year. Domestic traffic rose 27.9 percent to 5.2 million, while international passengers climbed 21.8 percent to 1.8 million.

The airline averaged a SLF of 84.9 percent, as total seat capacity expanded by 24.8 percent to 8.2 million.

“Despite the shift of Easter from March of last year into April of this year, the traffic growth and SLF remained robust for both domestic and international networks.

For the first quarter, overall, we have registered increases in load factor while growing capacity at circa 25pct. This reinforces our positive outlook for the second quarter of this year,” CEB President & Chief Commercial Officer Xander Lao said.

In 2024, CEB carried 24.5 million passengers, an 18 percent increase year-on-year while maintaining a SLF of 84.4 percent. The airline captured 54.1 percent of the domestic market and 20.6 percent of the international market last year.