Germanwings, part of the Lufthansa group, increased first-half sales 60 percent to EUR163 million (USD$198 million) on rising demand for low-cost travel, it said on Wednesday.

The number of passengers it carried also rose 60 percent to more than 2.3 million. Germanwings expects to carry between 5.5 and six million passengers this year, generating sales of about EUR400 million (USD$486.1 million), up from EUR247 million (USD$300 million) in 2004.

Germanwings is owned by Lufthansa regional partner Eurowings, in which Lufthansa has a 49 percent stake. The airline currently has aircraft stationed in Stuttgart, Cologne/Bonn and Berlin.