Ryanair’s O’Leary says airlines cannot keep fares low with current oil prices.
Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary said today that demand for air travel remained very strong because airlines had kept fares low, but warned that this could not continue with oil prices at current levels.
O’Leary said that jet fuel costs would push summer 2027 fares up by 15% to 20%.
“We’re optimistic for the future, but there’s lots of short-term challenges, most notably what will happen with Trump and the Republicans in the midterm elections in November,” he told Reuters in an interview.
“We want to see a resolution of the war in Ukraine. We want to see a resolution of the war in the Middle East. We’d like everybody to get back to peace, love and air travel.”
Speaking at a press conference in Warsaw O’Leary also addresses possible delays in certification of Boeing Max planes.
He said that if there were a delay, Ryanair hopes it would be “a matter of days, not weeks or months.”
“We still expect to receive the first 15 Max 10 aircraft in the spring of 2027,” he said during a conference in Warsaw.
