The Hungarian low cost carrier reported profits of €50 million in the three months to June 30, down 14% on Q1 2017.

It has also reduced its full-year growth forecast with ATC disruption likely to continue into the autumn.

Nonetheless, passenger numbers increased nearly 20% to 8.6 million and revenue to €553.4 million, up some 18%.

Wizz is the latest airline to pin stalling financials on the European ATC situation.

This week, Wizz was among four major airline groups to write jointly to the European Commission to call for action on the ATC situation.

French ATC strikes are up 300% on 2017 while in the six months to June 2018, more than 16,000 flights had been delayed according to Eurocontrol.

The airline added 20 new routes during Q1, increasing its network to 600 routes across 44 countries from 25 bases, with its fleet growing to 102 aircraft.

Jzsef Varadi, Wizz Air chief executive, described the results as “very solid”, adding last year’s “high yielding” early Easter had slightly skewed the comparative Q1 outlook in 2018.

He added European ATC issues would continue to pose “significant challenges” into Q2, forcing Wizz to trim its full-year growth target from 20% to 18%.