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Ryanair said airfares over the peak summer season would be lower than Europe’s largest low-cost carrier had expected, a rare note of caution from an industry that has boomed over the past year.
Chief executive Michael O’Leary said on Monday that demand for flying this summer was “positive”, but added “recent pricing is softer than we expected”.
He had previously forecast that fares would rise by as much as 10 per cent this summer, but now expected them to be flat or “modestly ahead” of last summer.
The forecast came as Ryanair reported a 34 per cent jump in profit after tax to €1.9bn for the 12 months to the end March.
The Dublin-listed airline did not provide guidance for its current financial year, but expected to grow passenger numbers by 8 per cent to between 198mn to 200mn.
“The final outcome for the . . . financial year will be heavily dependent upon avoiding adverse events during the 2025 financial year, such as wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, extensive air traffic control disruptions or further Boeing delivery delays,” O’Leary said.
Ryanair’s ambitious expansion plans have been hit by delivery delays. The airline said that it now expected to be short of 23 Boeing 737 Max aircraft by the end of July and warned “there remains a risk that Boeing deliveries could slip further”.
It also announced a €700mn share buyback, citing a need to use its “surplus cash”. Former Conservative cabinet member Amber Rudd would join the airline’s board in July, it said.
