Ryanair’s charter business is flying... thanks to sport
IT’S not one of the world’s most successful airlines for no reason.
Canny Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has now found a way to keep as many of his planes in the air as possible by renting them out for private use.
And although it is famously known as the ‘low-fares airline’, the clientele renting the jets are among Europe’s bestpaid athletes.
A spokesman for the no-frills flyer said: ‘Ryanair has recently secured charter services for a number of professional sports clients including the PRO14, European Professional Club Rugby and several European football clubs.’
They added that their planes have helped transport them safely to their away matches around Europe ‘throughout the Covid-19 pandemic’.
Its ’private’ clients include Munster Rugby, Connacht Rugby, the Italian Rugby Federation’s Benetton Rugby and Zebre Rugby clubs on the private charter flights.
And those lucky enough to avail of the private service won’t have to put up with the usual Ryanair ham and cheese croissant or the announcement of scratch cards for sale – but will be treated to fine dining on board.
Since 2016, the airline has been operating private charter services, which have seen ‘considerable demand’ from customers in the past year.
Travel industry expert Eoghan Corry said: ‘They would not be in the charter business ever, it’s not something they’d do but the whole rugby club thing will be happening until May and nothing will be happening in the leisure market until then.’
By branching out further into this niche, it also means Ryanair’s pilots and aircraft stayed certified to fly when the skies do eventually reopen again for regular travel.
‘It’s a really expensive business trying to get your aircraft recertified, pilots aren’t too bad, you can use a flight simulator but getting an aircraft recertified is a nightmare,’ he added.
When air travel restrictions are full lifted, hopefully in the spring, all airlines will be looking for recertification for their planes at the same time.
Pointing out the savvy approach taken by Mr O’Leary’s airline staying ahead of the pack, Mr Corry explained: ‘What Ryanair has done is be in a position to jump very quickly if things are right. ‘They went into the global recession as a middleweight airline and emerged as a heavyweight. They grew 60% during the global financial recession by keeping aircraft in the skies, putting out air-fare sales all the time. It’s the way they’re programmed to think.’
Clients can choose from the airline’s Boeing 737-700 business class jet charter or the Boeing 737-800 – each of which offer up to six hours of flying and with a range of ‘fine dining’ and onboard services to choose from.
The aviation sector has suffered a major blow due to the pandemic and difficulties around travelling abroad for non-essential purposes.
Ryanair’s passenger figures slumped by 83% in December, while the airline carried 1.9million passengers that month, down from 11.2million on December 2019’s total.
The airline said it operated about 22% of its normal December schedule.