Ryanair has reported profits of €88 million for Q3 compared to a €66 million loss in the same quarter last year, though it warns there are challenges ahead as it waits for the Boeing 737 Max to be certified to fly again.
The airline saw a 13 per cent increase in revenue per passenger, with ancillary revenue alone up 21 per cent.
But the future could bring challenges for Ryanair, which has pushed back its target to serve 200 million passengers a year until 2025 or 2026 following delays to the delivery of the group’s first Boeing 737 Max. The airline said it does not expect the aircraft to be delivered until September or October this year, with cost savings likely not to be seen until late 2021.
However, the carrier remains confident that the “gamechanger” 737 Max, which offers 4 per cent more seats and burns 16 per cent less fuel, “will transform our cost base and our business for the next decade”.
Last summer, Ryanair announced it would have to cut up to 900 jobs and look at closing certain bases thanks to the delayed delivery of the Max, though it said today that it has tried to minimise job losses through base transfers and seasonal bases.
During its results presentation, the carrier reiterated its claim to be “Europe’s greenest, cleanest airline”. It said it has the lowest carbon emissions of any major EU airline at 66g per passenger kilometre and added that it will pay more than €630 million in environmental taxes this year.
Looking ahead, Ryanair’s environmental policy aims to eliminate plastic in the next five years, cut its noise footprint by 40 per cent per seat, reduce CO2 emissions by 10 per cent by 2030 and encourage passengers to support its voluntary carbon offsetting programme.