GLASGOW Airport achieved an 8.9 per cent year-on-year rise in passenger numbers in April, amid strong demand for its growing network of European routes.

The airport said yesterday that it had handled 785,719 passengers last month, up from 721,796 in April 2016.

The increase was driven by a 17.9 per cent year-on-year leap in international passenger numbers to 426,276 last month. Domestic passenger numbers were down by 0.3 per cent year-on-year at 359,443.

Glasgow Airport highlighted the fact that April represented its 50th consecutive month of year-on-year growth in passenger numbers.

It noted strong demand for European routes including Ryanair’s new services to Valencia in Spain, the Portuguese capital of Lisbon, and the Lithuanian city of Palanga.

Aberdeen International Airport meanwhile reported its domestic and international passenger numbers had increased by two per cent and 0.5 per cent respectively in April, with nearly 252,000 people travelling through its doors last month.

And Edinburgh Airport reported a 13.1 per cent year-on-year jump in passenger numbers to 1.14 million in April.

This was driven mainly by international passenger numbers, which showed a 20.4 per cent year-on-year increase to 705,683. Edinburgh Airport cited the boost to international passenger numbers from new services launched over the past year.

Domestic passenger numbers last month were up by three per cent on April 2016 at 436,140.