Ryanair is not seeing any impact from Brexit on demand for flights, and is prepared for a no-deal, chief marketing officer Kenny Jacobs said this week.
Ryanair was not interested in buying British regional airline Flybe, which put itself up for sale last week, he added in a press conference on Wednesday November 21.
Jacobs reiterated comments that Ryanair, which has been hit by a series of strikes this year, would come to agreements with unions in its main markets before the end of March.
Strong Demand
"The demand that's out there...is really, really strong. The European consumer, the British consumer just continues to book," Jacobs said.
Ryanair's chief executive Michael O'Leary has in the past warned that a disorderly Brexit could ground flights for a number of weeks after the UK leaves on March 29, but after reassurances on flying rights provided by the EU last week, that is no longer a risk, said Jacobs.
"If we're in a no-deal Brexit situation, flying will be fine," he said.
Ownership Rules
The action Ryanair will have to take if there's no deal will be to comply with EU ownership rules. Once the UK is no longer part of the EU, the 20% of Ryanair shares owned by British investors will be treated differently, Jacobs said.
He repeated the airline's plan of restricting voting rights for UK shareholders, adding that Ryanair's board and the EU had both already approved the plan.
Flybe
Ryanair ruled out an interest in buying Flybe, a smaller operator which is looking for a new owner after warning that profits would be lower than expected due to recent rises in the fuel price.
"We're not interested in Flybe," Jacobs said. "It'll probably be split up and you'll probably get a few different airlines buying the various assets."
Ryanair's plan was predominantly for organic growth, he said.
On Track To Reach Agreements
Referring to a wave of strikes this year which has meant thousands of cancelled Ryanair flights and which it has said will dent profits, Jacobs said the airline was on track to reach agreements with its biggest unions.
"We'll definitely have a few more big agreements in place pre-Christmas but not all. I think probably when we get to March of next year I think this will be normalised," he said, explaining that that meant signing agreements with all the relevant unions in its biggest markets.
News by Reuters, edited by Hospitality Ireland. Click subscribe to sign up for the Hospitality Ireland print edition.
