Singapore-based budget airline Tiger Airways saw a year-on year increase of 22% in passengers last month.

The airline, which is the low-cost arm of global full-service carrier Singapore Airlines, carried 555,000 passengers in December of 2010, whereas in 2009 it had carried some 456,000. The news comes from a statement released on Monday, which also said that the airline’s load factor rose from 90% for in December of 2009 to 91% in December of 2010.

Monday’s announcement also revealed that last year Tiger Airways carried 5.8 million passengers on its network of routes, which span across Asia and Australia. It marks an impressive rise of 32% over figures seen in 2009.

The news comes after Tiger had announced a new route from its Singapore hub to Taipei, which began yesterday, as well as an additional daily flight from Singapore to Jakarta. The carrier’s fleet currently consists of 25 Airbus A320s, however it will be taking delivery of nine additional A320s as its network continues to expand.

Tony Davis, CEO and president of Tiger Airways, said that the good news is a result of continued growth in consumer demand throughout Asia and Australia for his carrier’s low-cost product.