Ch Aviation
Ryanair (FR, Dublin Int'l) CEO Michael O'Leary has admitted that his airline has no firm plans to begin transatlantic flights owing to a lack of what he termed "affordable" aircraft. Speaking in London, O'Leary told Travelmole that any transatlantic flights would be operated by a sister brand, which is still "4 or 5 years away".
O’Leary blamed the delays on Middle Eastern carriers whom he accused of buying up long-haul aircraft in such quantities as to limit the market.
“We would like to fly to the US, with fares of €10 going and $10 coming back,” he said.
In the interim, Ryanair's head of corporate travel and groups Lesley Kane has confirmed the LCC's plans to expand into Russia, Israel and Turkey.
"We are talking to new airports, a lot of which are key business airports, some of which are in totally new markets which are actively looking to encourage Ryanair to fly there," said Kane.
In order to promote growth, Kane said Ryanair would be looking to increase its frequencies to major airports to capture a greater share of the higher-spending business travel market.
With 175 aircraft on order, Ryanair intends to serve over 110 million passengers by 2019.