Ryanair continues Stansted, Dublin talks
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Ryanair said it could “restart growth” at Stansted Airport and Dublin Airport this September if its talks with new owners are successful.
Any new routes or frequencies from the airports could be made if the talks offer the right commercial agreements for the low-cost carrier, which pulled services from the airports on the grounds of higher fees.
The carrier is also in talks with the Spanish airport monopoly AENA, the owner of more than 20 airports in popular tourist destinations, over potential growth opportunities in Spain.
Ryanair is also snapping up services where traditional carriers such as airberlin, SAS and LOT are scaling back, although the low-cost carrier said its route development is growing quicker than its fleet deliveries. As a result, the carrier will start receiving the first of 175 Boeing 737-800 aircraft from autumn 2014.
The route announcements come as the low-cost carrier announced a record high in full-year profits, up 13% compared to the previous year. The low-cost carrier saw its post-tax profits rise to EUR569 million with 5% more passengers at 79.3 million.
The airline is currently expecting its profits for the financial year to remain flat or see a slight increase.
“We expect modest yield and traffic growth for the full year to be partly offset by higher oil and Eurocontrol costs resulting in another year of profit growth in FY’14 which – subject to winter yield outturns – should increase to a range of between €570m to €600m,” said Michael O’Leary, chief executive of Ryanair.
“We are pleased to have reached acceptable pricing with Boeing, and the controlled delivery programme from autumn 2014 to end of 2018 will provide the opportunity to expand Ryanair’s fleet to over 400 aircraft and our traffic to over 100m per annum,” he added.
The airline’s fuel costs rose EUR290m and represent 45% of its total costs.