Ryanair believes it is on track to recover its 7% fare decline from 2024 this financial year, its group chief executive Michael O'Leary told Reuters in Madrid today.
"The traffic is ahead of target ... Fares look like they will rise by 7% for the full year," Michael O'Leary said, adding this summer's fares were "pretty much" at levels recorded in the summer of 2023.
The CEO said full-year results would, however, depend heavily on pricing in the company's third quarter - which includes the Christmas season - and in the fourth quarter, for which it currently had "very little visibility".
He added that economic weakness in Britain and France was leading to price sensitivity, prompting consumers in those countries to trade down to Ryanair from flag carriers like British Airways or Air France.
"At the moment there seems to be less demand for trans-Atlantic travel to America - I think (US President Donald) Trump has kind of alienated people - and more people are holidaying around the Mediterranean and Europe, and that has been very good for Ryanair's business," Mr O'Leary said.
Meanwhile Ryanair said today it was confident that US planemaker Boeing would get permission to boost the monthly production rate of its flagship 737 model to 42 in October and then 48 by March or April next year.
Ryanair, Boeing's largest European customer, has had to repeatedly cut growth forecasts due to delays at Boeing, which is working to stabilise production after a mid-air panel blowout on a new 737 MAX in January 2024 exposed widespread production quality and safety problems.
Michael O'Leary, whose team holds regular meetings with Boeing management, said he was "fairly confident" that the US Federal Aviation Administration would sign off on an increase in monthly production from 38 to 42 in October.
"Will the FAA then allow them to go to rate 48 next March, April, which is ... the next big jump? We're pretty confident that will happen," he told Reuters in an interview.
The FAA capped 737 MAX production at 38 per month in early 2024 after the panel blowout. It said on September 26 that Boeing had not sought a rate increase, but that if it did, onsite FAA safety inspectors would conduct extensive reviews.
Boeing said earlier that month that it did not foresee any supply chain problems preventing it from lifting monthly 737 MAX output to 42 by year-end.
The other big question facing Boeing is the timing of regulatory approval for the new 737 MAX 7 and MAX 10 aircraft. Ryanair has 150 firm orders for the MAX 10.
"Will they get the MAX 7 and MAX 10 certified in 2026? ... Boeing are telling us they're now very confident that certification will take place," Michael O'Leary said.
While welcoming recent progress at Boeing, the Ryanair boss said there were no guarantees.
"So we're pretty confident, but it could still be disrupted," he said.
