(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JANUARY 30 - The flag carrier Air Serbia has registered a 9.5% increase in the number of passenger transported in 2019 compared to 2018, the company said in a statement. The passengers carried on scheduled and charter flights in 2019 were to 2.81 million, "a record high," Air Serbia said. According to company's data, Air Serbia operated a total of 33,322 flights, 2,370 of which were charter flights of its charter brand Aviolet. The average passenger load factor was 72 per cent last year. Air Serbia established flights from two more hub airports in the Balkan country and expanded its network with 23 new flights. "In 2019, we delivered the largest network expansion and carried more passengers since we had started operations as Air Serbia" and "we have confirmed our position of regional leader in the sphere of commercial aviation," said Duncan Naysmith, Air Serbia CEO. (ANSA).