Europe's largest low-cost airline Ryanair expects a loss of almost one billion euros in the 2020/21 financial year due to the slump in travel during the corona pandemic. Although the development is difficult to predict in view of the changes in travel restrictions, the management is “cautiously optimistic” forecasting a loss of 850 to 950 million euros for the financial year running until the end of March, the company said.
It was only at the beginning of January that Ryanair slashed its already dry business plans for the winter due to the tightening of lockdowns.
Since then, Ryanair has only been expecting 26 to 30 million passengers for the 2020/21 financial year, although according to Monday's announcement, a number at the lower end is more likely. In the three months to December, the company had a total of only 8.1 million passengers, 78 percent fewer than a year ago. The bottom line was a loss of almost 321 million euros. In the same period last year, Europe's largest low-cost airline had earned almost 88 million euros.
After the corona crisis, CEO Michael O'Leary wants to start again. In the financial year after next, the number of passengers should return to the pre-crisis level. The number of annual passengers is expected to grow to 200 million by the 2026 financial year. It was only in December that the group had increased its orders for the Boeing 737 Max by 75 to 210 units.
