LONDON – In terms of flight movements on a seven-day rolling average, Ryanair has exceeded its pre-pandemic numbers significantly, according to RadarBox.com.

Even despite a busy Summer 2022 season, Ryanair is starting the Winter 2022/23 season off strongly and is performing extremely well.

Without further ado, let’s get into the numbers…

The Numbers…

For October 15-22, which was last week, Ryanair achieved 2,780 flights based on a seven-day rolling average, which is an increase of 16.56% compared to the same period last year.

The 2022 number is around 438 flights more than the same period in 2019, which is known as the pre-pandemic era.

Below is a list of the last four weeks’ worth of data:

As for this week (October 21-29, 2022), the airline is expected to achieve 2,931 movements, which is 24.94% higher than the same period last year.

Could Numbers Crumble If UK Withdrawal Occurs?

Could the numbers crumble if Ryanair goes forward with its threat to withdraw from the United Kingdom over soaring inflation and the impending recession?

Back in September, Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair threatened to pull out of the UK aviation market and move its fleet if the pounds collapsed and soaring inflation and heightened interest rates began to affect the demand for air travel.

The new party leader for the conservative UK government at that point, Liz Truss, is under even greater pressure now after her cabinet announced a mini-budget which is causing mass international market panic and has caused the value of the pound to drop to its lowest points in nearly 70 years.

In an interview at an event in Dublin with BNN Bloomberg, Eddie Wilson, head of the carrier’s main airline unit, said: “If there are issues with demand, we have that ability to grow and locate aircraft in places that have the best cost base and where demand reflects putting in that capacity,”

Chief Executive Officer Michael O’Leary, speaking at a press conference, said Britain’s fiscal policy combined with spending commitments, including energy price caps, “could bankrupt the UK economy in the next two years.”

Now, with Rishi Sunak appointed as the new Prime Minister, GCEO Michael O’Leary does seem happy about this appointment, with Reuters reporting that he is calling for a free trade deal with the European Union post-BREXIT.

Overall…

It remains clear that Ryanair is definitely in a strong position, so much so that they could influence political decisions due to their flexibility amongst base output.

Looking ahead, it’s going to be interesting to see the numbers going into the Winter 2022/23 season, especially with the low-cost carrier announcing further frequency additions to bases across Europe.

Either way, this is going to be something to watch, as the airline is pushing to return back to stronger profitability.