Ryanair reports €10.3m loss due to weather and disputes

Budget airline Ryanair reported a loss for the final three months of last year today after it was forced to cancel more than 3,000 flights.

Chief executive Micheal O’Leary said the carrier had been expecting to break even in the third quarter but reported a net loss of €10.3m, compared with a deficit of €10.9m in the previous year, as strikes and severe weather grounded its aircraft.

However, a 15% rise in average fares to €34, a surge of 20% in ancillary revenues, such as in-flight sales of refreshments and entertainment, and a 6% hike in passenger numbers helped offset the impact of strikes in Europe and heavy snowfall in the UK.

The airline faced a 37% rise in its third-quarter fuel bill but Mr O’Leary said the group was on course to hit full-year net profits at the upper end of its forecast range of between €380m and €400m.

Mr O'Leary said: "We are surprised that the widespread negative commentary on the Irish economy has been allowed to cloud some analysis of Ryanair’s future growth and profitability.

"Some commentators misunderstand that over recent years, due to high airport costs at Shannon and Dublin, as well as rapid capacity growth in lower cost markets like Spain and Italy, Ireland has fallen from over 20% of Ryanair’s originating traffic to less than 10% in the current year.

"Ryanair has little exposure to the Irish economy. We do believe that Irish tourism is now ripe for growth given the increased competitiveness of Irish hotels, guest houses, restaurants and golf clubs, but this potential will not be realised until the Government travel tax is abolished and the high cost DAA airport monopoly is broken up and replaced with competing terminals and airports.

"We hope the incoming Irish Government will work with Ryanair to exploit the potential for tourism and job growth by returning to the low cost access policy which drove Ireland’s tourism growth in the 1990’s."