Ryanair posted a 12 per cent increase in profits in quarter three despite a major PR disaster and has announced it will buy back €750 million in shares.
Third quarter profit reach €106 million, while average fares fell 4 per cent to €32 per customer, according to the airline. Traffic was up 6 per cent, with load factors up 1 per cent to 96 per cent and unit costs falling 1 per cent.
CEO Michael O’Leary said: “Following our pilot rostering failure in September, the painful decision to ground 25 aircraft ensured that punctuality of our operations quickly returned to our normal 90 per cent average. Our AGB customer service programme, coupled with 4 per cent lower fares, stimulated 6 per cent traffic growth to 30.4 million at an industry-leading 96 per cent load factor.”
Commenting on Ryanair’s recent decision to recognise pilots unions, O’Leary said the move “may add some complexity to our business and may cause short-term disruptions and negative PR” but claims it will not change the carrier’s plans to carry 200 million passengers a year by 2024. He also said the airline plans to “capitalise on new growth opportunities in France and Scandinavia”.
Ryanair faced a 3 per cent increase in non-fuel costs as a result of several major events in 2017, namely higher staff and EU261 compensation costs caused by the rostering failure. It says staff costs will rise by €45 million this year as it rolls out a 20 per cent pay rise agreed with pilots.
O’Leary went on to say that airlines such as Ryanair that operate flights between the UK and EU are still awaiting clarification on the impact of Brexit on their ability to fly, commenting that “we... need clarity on this issue before we publish our summer 2019 schedules in mid-2018”. Ryanair has applied for a UK air operator’s certificate from the CAA and expects the process to be completed by September.
ryanair.com