Ryanair’s cheap flight fightback
LOWER FARES TO RIDE OUT COVID TURBULENCE
RYANAIR is to cut fares to boost passenger numbers after revealing winter bookings took a kicking from Omicron.
The no-frills airline said yesterday that the first three months of this year would see “significant price stimulation”, in a welcome boost to bargain-hunting travellers.
It came as the Irish carrier counted the cost of the Covid variant which, as with many other businesses, dented trade in the run-up to Christmas and over the new year.
Ryanair said its load factor – how full its planes were – rose from 84% in October to 86% in November, when it carried 10.2million passengers in the month.
But the sudden emergence of Omicron saw its load factor drop to 81% in December, with 9.5million passengers.
Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary insisted it was sticking to its full-year forecast of carrying just under 100 million passengers. In an update yesterday, the airline said losses narrowed to £80million in the final three months of last year, down from £267m the same time in 2020.
But due to what O’Leary called “Covid uncertainty”, he said the airline was keeping to its guided loss of anywhere from £208m to £374m for the full year. Mr O’Leary added: “We would caution all shareholders to expect further Covid disruptions before we here in Europe and the rest of the world can finally declare that the Covid crisis is behind us.” While fares are falling now, an expected bounce back in summer bookings could see the tide turning.
Ryanair chief financial officer Neil Sorahan added that the fact so many rivals were cutting capacity meant “there absolutely could be upward pressure on fares”.