Ryanair CEO threatens to raise prices by 10% and explains who is to blame

As one of those phenomena that is seen once or twice a year in the sky, comes the prediction once again of Michael O'Leary, CEO of Ryanair, warning that… The company can increase its flights.

Specifically, O'Leary has already hinted that his company's ticket prices may rise by 10% this summer, as a result of delays in the delivery of a Boeing order that will not be ready on the scheduled dates.

This increase adds to a sharp recovery in 2023

“Our schedule for summer 2024 was based on the need to acquire 50 aircraft. If we only get 40 to 45 aircraft at the end of March, we may have to announce some schedule reductions… mainly on routes with high daily frequencies.” Leary communicated with the words he gathered guardian.

The Ryanair CEO was referring to an order the company has placed with Boeing that everything indicates will end up being delayed. Aviation has had problems ever since, On January 5 of this yeara 737 MAX 9 aircraft I lost part of the fuselage due to a “door plug” problem.

The problem occurred when this piece came off mid-flight, ten minutes after takeoff. This “door stopper” disabled two emergency exits that were not there, as air regulations allowed for if the number of passengers did not reach the maximum permitted on a flight of this size.

On up to three flights, the system warned of possible problems with the flight system. “Automatic compression” But despite the plane being further inspected, it remained operational until the accident. Therefore, the F.A.A Ground all units This plane until it was clarified what happened and the problem was resolved.

But no Problems for Boeing I continued. Through a magnifying glass placed on the company, it was discovered that its quality tests did not meet the expected requirements. This has prompted airline executives to attack Boeing.

“They are neglected. Quality and production standards have declined. If you spend $100 million on an airplane, it should be in perfect, immaculate condition,” Ryanair's CEO said in words cited in the same article. guardian.

It wasn't the only touch of attention from her clients. Tim Clark, President The UAEHe actually gave another wake-up call to the company, after that Bloomberg He stressed that he had been asking Boeing for some time to improve in this area: “They have had problems with quality control for a long time, and this is just another example.”

All of this led to a delay in the delivery of some aircraft, which Ryanair considers necessary to maintain the price of its flights. “If we can deliver 57 Boeing aircraft before June, we will be operating at full capacity all summer, because we have airports offering us incentives right now, because someone else is taking over the planes.”

O'Leary confirms that the price increase will be between 5% and 10% if they are unable to operate these aircraft. But the increase in prices is in addition to last summer and the previous summer as a result of increased demand after the pandemic. Demand skyrocketed and within two years flight prices soared up to 36%.

However, the Ryanair CEO points out that airlines have not yet regained their pre-coronavirus capacity. “It works 90%“, confirms O'Leary, compared to the pre-pandemic years. Added to Boeing's problems are Airbus' problems with one of its engines. Although less significant, the Airbus A320 had Problems with Pratt & Whitney engines Since last year, more than 1,000 fans have been forced to retire.

Boeing has been trying to stem the reputational crisis it has been suffering since the latest incident, and was quick to stress that it “deeply” regrets the impact on the plans of a “valuable customer,” as it describes Ryanair. “We are working to address their concerns and take action on a comprehensive plan to enhance the quality and performance of 737 aircraft delivery,” they said in a statement. Reuters.

Image | Ryanair

In Chataka | Flying for 10 euros will end. Or so says Ryanair's CEO