Ryanair's latest traffic statistics for June show the low-cost airline report a customer growth of 11 per cent, an increase from 9.5 million to 10.6 million passengers for the same month last year.
RTÉ reports that despite Brexit causing Ryanair shares to fall sharply and having to deal with numerous strikes by French Air Traffic Controllers (ATC), the 2016 UEFA European Championship greatly helped grow the company's traffic as well as increasing its load factor by one per cent to 94 per cent during the same period. Ryanair also saw its rolling annual traffic grow by 16 per cent to 109.6 million customers despite 'repeated disruptions caused by unacceptable French ATC strikes'/
Meanwhile, Aer Lingus and Ryanair were both forced to cancel a number of flights today (5 July) as a result of further French ATC strikes. This is the group's 13th strike in just 14 weeks and was undertaken due to planned pay cuts and changes to Air France pilots working conditions.
The Irish Independent reports that Aer Lingus were forced to cancel eight flights and Ryanair ten, as well as there being the possibility of significant delays for any flights using French airspace.
Ryanair's Kenny Jacobs said: "The recent Brexit vote underlines that the EU Commission must begin to deliver real benefits for Europe’s consumers, and show families and holiday makers that Europe is on their side and will not allow a small group of French ATC unions to repeatedly close the skies over Europe."
