Ryanair ‘could buy more small airlines’

Ryanair could acquire one or two smaller airlines like its separately branded Polish and Austrian units in the coming years, but nothing big, chief executive Michael O’Leary has said.

“You’ll see in the next couple of years, I’d like to see Ryanair evolve as kind of a group of different airlines. We will have Ryanair based out of Ireland, you’ll have Laudamotion based out of Austria, you’ll have Ryanair Sun ... in Poland,” he said.

That will, I think, allow us in the next number of years to maybe add one or two other airlines. Now, nothing big but if there were some small-scale opportunities that popped up like the Laudamotion opportunity then we could do it

- he said, adding they would have to bring new bases in Europe.

His comments came as Ryanair said it had acquired the remaining quarter of its Austrian unit Laudamotion for an undisclosed price.

The company previously owned a 75% stake in Laudamotion. Former Formula One racing champion Niki Lauda, who last year bought back and rebranded the airline he founded, gave Ryanair the option to buy the whole carrier.

“Laudamotion is now a 100%-owned subsidiary of Ryanair Holdings plc,” Laudamotion said. It gave plans to expand rapidly, to 7.5 million passengers and 30 aircraft in 2021 from four million passengers and 19 aircraft this year.

Ryanair also said its cabin crew in Spain has voted in favour of a recognition agreement with workers’ unions. The airline and the unions are working on a collective labour agreement which they both hope to conclude on or before April 30.

Reuters