Comment on the release of Ryanair's half year results

Published:

02/11/2009

Topic:

Press Release,Travel,Flights

Commenting on the release of Ryanair's half year results and what they mean for the consumer, Bob Atkinson, travel expert at travelsupermarket.com says:

"Whilst Ryanair has made a healthy profit in its half year results, a significant achievement in comparison to the airline's struggling rivals; it has made most of this as a result of a huge drop in fuel costs and a rise in ancillary charges.  And the airline has warned that the second half of the year will be unprofitable as we head into the second winter with challenging market conditions for all airlines.

"Ancillary charges now account for one fifth of all Ryanair's revenues; through these 'optional extras' the airline has collected a whopping £346 million.  Although Ryanair should be applauded for finally overhauling its website and clarifying additional costs to customers within the booking process, it's still very difficult to avoid credit and debit card charges, which stand at £5 per person each way.  Furthermore, the cost of buying food onboard is extortionate at nearly £5 for a glass of wine, £4 for a beer and £3 for a hot drink.  Ryanair is attempting to cash in on falling revenues by hiking these prices and charges ever higher - the recent increase in baggage charges being one of the latest examples (£30 return for just one piece of luggage under 15kg). There is evidence that the growth in collecting these charges are slowing as passengers switch to hand baggage only and look to acquire Electron cards to avoid payment fees.

"Ryanair is expecting fares to fall further this winter by up to 20 per cent.  With today's results stating an average fare of 39 euros, this could see fare averages falling to only 31 euros, bringing a winter of cheap fares to many customers.  However will Ryanair introduce new ways to collect even more revenues from customers in the coming months?  New routes to the Canaries will be a firm favourite for many Brits this winter, however the cut back of services at Manchester, Stansted and Dublin will affect many others as they lose out.

"Ryanair looks to be in a battle with Boeing about the price of new aircraft that are due.  If this can't be resolved they look to hold back on their expansion plans - this could well mean more consolidation for services from the UK as we head towards next summers' schedules and Ryanair focuses on European bases."

-Ends-

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