Ryanair said it expects to grow its Irish passenger traffic by 10 million over the next decade while creating 2,000 new jobs in Ireland. Celebrating 35 years in business, the carrier announced an ambitious growth strategy for its Irish operations while hailing its existing contribution to the Irish economy.
It said it planned to grow passenger numbers in and out of Ireland from 20 million to 30 million a year by 2030. The expansion will create more than 2,000 additional roles for pilots, cabin crew, engineers and IT developers.
The announcement comes amid concern about the impact of aviation emissions. Ryanair unit chief executive Eddie Wilson said, however, the airline was investing more than €20 billion in more fuel efficient, lower emissions aircraft. The company has ordered 210 Boeing B737 aircraft.
It said these new aircraft will carry 4 per cent more passengers while reducing fuel consumption by 16 per cent per seat. The planes are estimated to lower CO2 emissions by up to 20 per cent.
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While accepting airlines and air passengers should pay for emissions produced, Ryanair boss Micheal O’Leary said there was a “huge unfairness” in how environmental taxes on air travel were levied in Europe, suggesting the more efficient short-haul services bore the brunt of the taxes while the more polluting long-haul services were exempt.
As part of the event, Ryanair published a report by consultancy PwC, which showed the airline and its passengers spend about €1.5 billion a year in the Irish economy while the business supported more than 26,000 jobs.
The company, which operates 200 routes from seven Irish airports, claims to have recovered faster from the Covid slump in aviation with passenger numbers up 15 per cent on pre-Covid levels.
“As a peripheral country on the edge of Europe, it is vital that Ryanair continues to promote low-cost environmentally efficient connectivity for Irish citizens/visitors to Europe and the world, and also that we continue to bring many millions of European visitors to Dublin and the regions of Ireland on a year-round basis,” Mr Wilson said.
“Today’s PwC report quantifies the enormous contribution made by Ryanair, our people and our passengers to the Irish economy over the last 35 years,” he said
“We are now embarking on a new decade of growth and investment here in Ireland. In partnership with our main airport partners at Dublin, Cork, Shannon and Belfast, Ryanair plans to grow Irish traffic from 20 million to 30 million annually over the next decade,” Mr Wilson said.
Attending the event, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said: “Ryanair is one of the world’s most innovative airlines and a formidable Irish company. It democratised foreign travel across Europe, making overseas holidays affordable for millions of people. We can be proud of Ryanair as an Irish company and as a driving force for change.”
