The company, which has now survived Covid and the SARS shutdowns of travel, said its March total transaction value was a post pandemic record and 6 per cent above the March 2019 level.

It also said Chinese carriers were now back in the Australian market and capacity was increasing. United Airlines and Korea Air had also recently boosted flights to Australia.

Airfares were also falling and the cost of a London return fare had dropped below $1500, similar to costs advertised 10 years ago.

In a trading update the company said travel demand was holding up strongly and its underlying cost margin was at an historic low which reflected the permanent and structural cost changes it initiated in the early stages of the pandemic.

Shares in Flight Centre also peaked above $20 this week for the first time since June.

But revenue has been impacted by the “rapid growth in lower revenue margin businesses”, which it had anticipated. However, it said it did not intend to slow the growth in this sector of the market because it would sacrifice future prosperity.

In the leisure travel sector, its total transaction value (which includes funds paid to it for external services like car hire) was up 280 per cent for the nine months to March 31.

The update said it was now targeting 2 per cent profit before tax.

Its corporate business was also recovering strongly and approaching pre-Covid monthly profit levels.