Budget airline easyJet has raked in nearly £4million a day in extra passenger charges.
Add-ons from checked-in baggage to in-flight food and drink generated almost £1.4billion in the year to the end of September.
The value of these “ancillary” sales was up nearly 14% on the previous year, and was worth around a fifth of easyJet’s near £6.4billion of total annual revenue.
Growth in add-ons outstripped a rise in passenger numbers, which grew by 8.6% to 96 million.
Ryanair’s ancillary sales soared 21% to £2billion. It came as easyJet announced plans to become the world’s first major airline to operate net-zero carbon flights across its network.
The move, from yesterday, will mean it offsets all carbon emissions by investing in CO2-reducing projects, including tree planting.
Chief executive Johan Lundgren said: “People are thinking about the potential carbon impact of different types of transport. We want to be one of the best choices.”
The £25million cost over the next year equates to 25p per passenger, and compares with an expected fuel bill of £1.6billion.
Mr Lundgren said it was not “a long-term solution”, adding costs were not being added on to tickets.
The move, along with plans to launch package holidays, came as easyJet revealed annual profits fell 26% to £427million.
