‘Executive jet’ move for Ryanair

Micheal O’Leary’s company has acquired a Learjet 45 executive aircraft which has been registered in the Isle of Man.

However, Ryanair insists the jet will not be used to pamper executives but for engineering support.

“It is used as engineering support to protect and maintain our record of the fewest delays and cancellations of any major European airline,” Ryanair said.

The jet, based in Stansted Airport, is similar to one of the Government’s ministerial jets, which is operated by the Irish Air Corps and more often used for air ambulance services.

Produced in the US by Bombardier Aerospace, a new Learjet 45 costs around $11.5m (€8.9m) and is generally configured to carry a two-person crew and up to nine passengers.

The aircraft is already known to have visited a number of European airports including Dublin in recent months and flies under the call sign ‘Ryanair 001’.

It is still not clear whether Ryanair owns the jet as records show it is registered to Isle of Man-based Aviation Leasing.

The acquisition may soon be flying east as it has emerged Ryanair is looking to expand into Russia.

A spokesperson for Ryanair said: “Ryanair has had discussions with a number of Russian airports, but they are purely exploratory at this time. Ryanair will always meet with airports that are interested in bringing Ryanair’s low fares to their market. Ryanair is currently in discussion with over 50 European airports, so competition for Ryanair growth is fierce.

“We talk to many airports and always keep the door open to new route options, and the best way to do that is by meeting them.”

Merrion analyst Ian Huggard said expanding to the east was Ryanair’s plan. “Look who Ryanair are competing against: Wizz Air and Norwegian Air Shuttle — they are going east,” he said.

Mr Huggard said that to expand into the east in a meaningful way, Ryanair may need to expand its fleet. He said from an analyst’s point of view, the expansion could hit the airline’s reported earnings in the short-term.

Mr Huggard said Ryanair would have to offer lower fares to gain a foothold in the market, which would lead to lower yields.

Ryanair also offered concession to EU antitrust regulators yesterday in a bid to secure approval for its takeover of Aer Lingus.

The airline refused to reveal details of the takeover but has previously said that British Airways, CityJet, and Virgin Atlantic Airways had expressed interest in taking over some of the contested routes.