Ryanair boss warns fares could rise this summer due to 'less aircrafts'

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Ryanair has warned that customers will face higher fares this summer, due to capacity constraints that will result in less flights.Airline boss Michael O'Leary has said that a a lack of available aircrafts will mean that European carriers will struggle to meet demand in the the high season.

Because of this, Ryanair's ticket prices are predicted to jump by up to 10 per cent, compared to the same time last year.A delay in deliveries of new airplanes from Boeing will cause the airline's growth in flyer numbers to be lower than originally forecast, resulting in the price drive.

This follows a 17 per cent increase in average fares which occurred in summer last year, Nottinghamshire Live reports.Ryanair originally foresaw that it would carry 205 million passengers for the year until the end of March 2025, which would be a sharp rise from the 183.5 million seen in the past 12 months. “With less aircraft, maybe we’ll have to bring that 205 million down towards 200 million passengers," Mr O’Leary told reporters at the carrier’s Dublin headquarters.“It might be a scratch below 200 million, we just don’t know at this stage.

That probably means that even our growth this year is going to be constrained in Europe, and I think that leads to a higher fare environment across Europe for summer 2024.”He went on: “Fares in summer 2024 are going to be up again on summer 2023.