Ryanair rules out US flights despite buying 135 new long-range jets
RYANAIR has flatly ruled out any entry to the long-haul or North American market despite the scheduled delivery of 135 extended range Boeing jets.
The budget airline has hailed its new Boeing 737 Max as “a game-changer” due to its extended range, greater fuel economy and extra seating capacity.
Ryanair is now awaiting delivery of 135 of the airliners from Boeing at an estimated cost of €110m each.
However, Ryanair marketing director Kenny Jacobs has ruled out the high-tech aircraft being used as part of a long-rumoured entry by the airline onto the transatlantic market.
Instead, Ryanair said its strategy will now be looking to extend its existing European operations farther into north Africa, the Middle East and eastern Europe.
“We don’t have any plans to go long haul.
“Yes, the Max aircraft are larger – we will have 197 seats on them as opposed to 189 on the current fleet [Boeing 737800s],” Mr Jacobs said. “You can optimise the flying from places like Edinburgh and Glasgow to Lanzarote.”
“If you look at the network we now have, we are flying to Jordan, Israel, north Africa and the Ukraine,” he added.
“So the network is expanding a bit, but we don’t have any plans to do long-haul flying.”
Ryanair placed an order for the Boeing 737 Max aircraft back in 2014 and the first aircraft in the 135-plane order are due for delivery early next year.
Ryanair is one of the world’s biggest operators of the Boeing 737, with almost 450 in its fleet.
In contrast, Ryanair’s rivals such as EasyJet and Wizz have focused on an Airbus fleet.