The Irish low-cost airline is targeting 300 million passengers per year. CEO O’Leary expects ticket prices to generally rise in the industry.
Europe’s largest low-cost airline Ryanair wants to significantly increase its passenger numbers by 2034. Then 300 million guests per year will fly with the Irish airline instead of the current 184 million, as Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary announced in Vienna. By then, the fleet will grow from 600 to around 800 Boeing aircraft. Given the capacity problems in the aviation industry, which would be exacerbated by engine overhauls of a particular Airbus A320 engine, the Ryanair boss expects flight prices to generally rise by around ten percent this summer.
The company wants to aggressively push forward its growth path, it said. Ryanair currently flies to more than 250 airports in 37 countries. O’Leary also included the expansion of the offering in Morocco among the projects with great potential. Ryanair also wants to offer several domestic flights in the North African country.
Ryanair has managed to keep the costs per passenger stable at 31 euros for several years – with sales per guest of around 65 euros. This is significantly below the costs that the competition has for passengers. The head of Ryanair Austria, Andreas Gruber, denied that this had to do with lower salaries. Employee pay is fair and performance-based.
According to the latest information, O’Leary expects a profit of 1.85 to 1.95 billion euros for the current financial year up to the end of March.
Source: Stern
