Ryanair is committed to being the first airline to return to Ukraine, once it is safe to do so after the Russian invasion. The CEO of him, Michael O’Leary, said Ryanair would carry 2 million people to four airports across the country this year and hoped to expand further ahead of last week’s invasion.
Ryanair will be the first airline to return to Ukraine
O’Leary said that Ryanair it was transporting humanitarian goods in the holds of its aircraft for the first time in 30 years to Polish airports, in direct connection with the Ukrainian embassies. The airline has had an increase in bookings in Poland, where Ukrainian citizens are trying to reunite with refugees near the border. Flight bookings on Ryanair however fell by around 20% in the early days of the conflict and are still down by around 10%.
O’Leary said he also expects massive demand for European beach destinations this summer. With the riskiest and most expensive long-haul flights due to the Covid and a ban on Russian airspace coupled with limited demand from those who stayed home during the pandemic, millions of people could compete for hotels and flights on short-haul routes.
The airline would like to expand heavily in the UK, particularly London Stansted, with 14 new routes that are expected to drive traffic above pre-Covid levels. Ryanair it is set to overtake easyJet as Britain’s largest air carrier during 2022, at least according to the airline recently.