easyJet passenger numbers up in October

Budget airline easyJet said it increased total passenger numbers by 8% in October.

Just under five million passengers bought seats on the airline, compared to 4.6m the previous year.

easyJet also said it increased its 'load factor' - which measures the number of passengers as a proportion of the number of seats available - slightly from 87.1% in October 2010 to 87.3% this year.

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However, both numbers are down on September, when easyJet sold 5.18m flights, filling 89.6% of its seats.

easyJet remains locked in a battle with its founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou.

In September, Sir Stelios, who owns 38% of easyJet, announced he was setting up a rival called FastJet.