(Alliance News) - Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair returned to profit in July thanks to a strong holiday season, but expects a "difficult" winter, Chief Executive Michael O'Leary told AFP on Tuesday.
"We went back to profit in July, we'll make a profit again in August because the recovery has been very strong in the peak summer period. But this winter will be difficult," O'Leary said after holding a major press conference in London.
Shares in the Dublin-based airline were down 3.1% to EUR15.84 in London on Tuesday afternoon.
Earlier, O'Leary told Reuters that Ryanair has lifted its passenger target for September, October and November to 10.5 million per month. The previous forecast in July was for 10 million passengers per month in that period.
O'Leary said Ryanair is set to beat its target for 10.5 million passengers in August, and that capacity should return to pre-pandemic levels in October - up from 90% in September and 80% in August.
But around 15% to 20% of seats will be empty over the winter, compared to 7% to 8% before the pandemic, he added. Pricing will "continue to build" over the winter and is expected to reach pre-Covid levels in summer 2022.
https://www.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idUSKBN2FW0IJ
source: AFP
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