RYANAIR HAS ANNOUNCED that net profit surged 72% in its first half thanks to higher fares and record traffic during the peak summer season.

Profit after tax came in at €2.2 billion in the six months to the end of September compared with €1.3 billion in the equivalent period one year earlier, Ryanair said in a statement.

Chief executive Michael O’Leary said the carrier’s full-year outlook “remains highly dependent on the absence of any unforeseen adverse events – for example such as Ukraine or Gaza – between now and the end of March”.

The aviation sector is enjoying a strong recovery after suffering heavy losses at the start of the decade when the Covid pandemic grounded flights worldwide.

“Ryanair Holdings reported a strong half-year profit … thanks to a strong Easter in the first quarter, record summer traffic and higher fares which offset significantly higher fuel costs,” the company statement said.

Traffic grew 11% to 105 million passengers while average fares jumped by almost one quarter.

O’Leary said the company expects full-year net profit of between €1.85 billion and €2.05 billion – a forecast that assumes “modest losses” over the winter.

He added that the outlook was clouded by uncertainty over the delivery of new Boeing planes, “a significantly higher full-year fuel bill, very limited fourth-quarter visibility and the risk of weaker consumer spending over coming months”.

US planemaker Boeing last month reported another hefty loss as it trimmed its full-year forecast for deliveries of the 737 to address a manufacturing problem on the aircraft.

- © AFP 2023