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The low-cost carrier is working to assure customers that its planes are safe, while also dealing with economic trends troubling the industry.
Ryanair’s chief executive is assuring customers that its planes are safe following a near-death accident this month.
On July 10, a man was partially sucked through a window that abruptly opened on a Ryanair Boeing 737 flight. The incident happened shortly after takeoff from Thessaloniki in Greece and forced the aircraft to make an emergency landing. The man’s head and shoulders were reportedly outside the aircraft before his wife—along with nearby passengers—pulled him back in.
The couple was on a flight operated by the Ryanair subsidiary Malta Air, according to The Guardian. The 61-year-old is in a hospital in Greece being treated for multiple injuries and is “seriously injured and in shock,” his wife told local outlets. “It’s important to me that he’s alive,” she said. “His hand is particularly badly injured, and he’s got burns. He’s not able to communicate, he doesn’t remember the whole event.”
After the situation, Ryanair sourced a replacement aircraft for the passengers that still needed to get to their destination. “Our customer care team have actively been in touch with the family since the incident,” Neil Sorahan, Ryanair’s group chief financial officer, told The Guardian. “Our crew did a phenomenal job and got the aircraft back to Thessaloniki. Everyone bar none walked off the aircraft. It was a great job done by the cabin crew and the pilots.”
According to the outlet, Sorahan said it was “way too early” to discuss if the airline would have to compensate the couple. What led to the broken window is still under investigation by the Hellenic Air and Rail Safety Investigation Authority.
Troubled finances
On Monday, Ryanair reported its first quarter earnings, which saw a 34 percent decrease from a year earlier due to customers delaying bookings amid the Middle East crisis. “I think interestingly, you’re going to see a shakeout in capacity in Europe as a result of what’s going on in the Middle East,” said Sorahan on CNBC. “There’s a lot of carriers out there that don’t have the cost base that Ryan had.”
The company reported an 11 percent increase in operating costs to €3.81 billion, and stated it has hedged 80 percent of its fuel requirements. The company warns that other European airlines could still face a “difficult winter” ahead. The low-cost carrier’s passenger fares fell 6 percent year-on-year, and total revenue was nearly flat, rising just 1 percent compared to the year prior. Still, the company continues to tout its success, telling CNBC it is close to debt-free.
“We’ve [got] over 715,000 people flying with us today,” Sorahan said on Monday. “No shortage of bookings. No shortage of people traveling. They’re just booking that little bit closer in.”
Jet fuel prices have severely affected travel both for airlines and passengers. Political tensions between Iran and the United States have caused global inflation, including ticket prices. According to the International Air Travel Association’s Jet Fuel Price Monitor, the average price of jet fuel has surged to $127 per barrel for the week ending 10 July, up 41% from the prior year. Despite minor mediations, jet fuel prices have begun to cool down, but might not return to “normal” for several months or years.
“I think there was some hesitancy back early in the first quarter, where there were some concerns around fuel supply. We all know that’s not an issue,” said Sorahan. “Lots and lots of fuel to get people out and back home again. Just good value for consumers in the market at the moment.”
This post originally appeared at inc.com.
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