Ryanair passengers paid an average of over €42 for their fare and €23 in ancillary charges in October–December 2023, according to the latest financial update by the company.
According to the airline:
- Ryanair’s average fare increased by 13pc.
- Ancillary revenue grew to €23 per passenger.
- Close-in loads and fares were impacted by the removal of Ryanair flights from certain OTA Pirate websites.
- Operating costs increased due to higher fuel costs, staff costs, and maintenance expenses.
A written statement from the airline said: “close-in loads and fares were softer than originally expected due to the sudden removal of Ryanair flights from many OTA Pirate websites in early December.
Traffic grew 7pc to 41.4m while average fares rose 13pc to over €42, thanks to a strong Oct. mid-term and peak Christmas/New Year travel.
Ancillary revenue increased 10pc to €0.95bn (c.€23 per passenger).
Operating costs increased 26pc to €2.7bn, primarily due to a 35pc increase in fuel costs, higher staff costs (reflecting pay restoration, crew, engineering & handler pay increases and higher crewing ratios as we improve ops. resilience) and the earlier timing of maintenance. The widening cost gap between Ryanair and all our EU competitors (which is further enhanced by Ryanair’s low-cost financing and net interest income) remains a growing competitive advantage.
Q4 fuel is almost 94pc hedged at approx. $89bbl (a mix of forwards and caps) and FY25 hedging has increased to 65pc at approx. $79bbl. Almost 90pc of Q4 €/$ opex is hedged at 1.09 and over 70pc of FY25 is hedged at 1.11. This strong hedge position protects us from current fuel price volatility and delivers approx. €450m savings on fuel already hedged for FY25.”
