Hotels and cars boost flights app

ONLINE flights search engine Skyscanner increased its turnover by 44 per cent last year as the company expanded to include hotel and car hire.

The company, which is majorityowned by Chinese travel giant Ctrip, was founded in 2003 by computer programmer Gareth Williams and two friends after Williams, a keen skier, became frustrated with the process of searching multiple websites to find the best prices for flights.

His idea was to create a single website which could collect, collate and compare prices for all commercial flights. It is now used by 50 million people a month.

Accounts for the year ending December 31, 2016 show sales grew from £110 million to £158 million while pre-tax profits slipped from £11 million to £7.3million due to a one-off equity share payment relating to the acquisition by Ctrip. However, operating profits almost doubled from £10.5million to £19.4million.

Skyscanner’s three founders flew up the rich lists as a result of Ctrip’s acquisition last December. Williams’ fortune is estimated at £215 million.

Skyscanner’s directors said: ‘The company’s long-term strategy is centred on owning a greater part of the travel journey from destination selection through to post-travel engagement.’

The value of tickets sold through the website reached £9.9billion last year, equivalent to 20.7 million bookings. The company recently signed a deal with Microsoft to provide flight prices through its personal assistant app, Cortana.