Ryanair today nudged up its full-year forecast for passenger numbers after adding more flights to its UK winter schedule in response to cuts by IAG-owned rival British Airways.
Europe's largest airline by passenger numbers expects to fly 166.5 million passengers in the year to the end of March.
This is up from a previous target of 165 million, after it added more than one million seats to and from 20 UK airports.
British Airways said this week it was cancelling some flights up to the end of October following Heathrow airport's decision to cap capacity to tackle widespread disruption.
Airlines and airports across Europe have struggled to cope with the rebound in post-lockdown travel, with many failing to recruit enough staff to handle check-ins and baggage.
However Ryanair, which made a point of keeping its pilots and crew up-to-date with their flying hours during the pandemic and does not fly from Heathrow, carried its highest-ever number of passengers in a month in both June and July.
It has been taking advantage of cancellations by rivals, particularly in the UK, by adding extra flights.
The Irish airline flew 97 million passengers in its last financial year and a record 149 million before the Covid-19 pandemic struck.
Earlier this month, the airline's group chief executive said that Ryanair's trademark €1 and €10 fares will not be seen for a "number of years" due to soaring fuel prices.
Michael O'Leary said he expected Ryanair's average fare to rise by about €10 over the next five years, from around €40 last year to roughly €50 by 2027.
Although soaring fuel prices, which are affecting the airline's fares, are also wreaking havoc on people's disposable incomes, Mr O'Leary said he was confident the number of customers will remain steady.
Instead, he believes travellers will flock en masse to lower-cost alternatives such as Ryanair and EasyJet.
"We think people will continue to fly frequently," he said.
"But I think people are going to become much more price sensitive and therefore my view of life is that people will trade down in their many millions," he stated.
Ryanair shares rose in Dublin trade today.
