In the first quarter of FY2023, Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair generated a profit. The airline did, however, issue a warning about the “fragile” situation of the aviation industry and the threat of probable additional COVID-19 variations in the autumn.
Ryanair reported a profit after tax (PAT) of €170 ($173 million) in Q1 FY2023, an improvement from a loss of €273 ($279 million) in Q1 FY2022. The strong demand for air travel was blamed for the profitable outcomes.
In order to accommodate the demand for air travel during the busy summer season, Ryanair received 73 Boeing 737 MAX 8200 aircraft throughout the quarter.
Ryanair has expressed concern about the “fragile” status of the airline industry despite the fact that Q1 was profitable, saying that “the strength of any rebound will be significantly dependant upon there being no unfavorable or unexpected developments for the remainder of FY23.”
“While we remain hopeful that the high rate of vaccinations in Europe will allow the airline and tourism industry to fully recover and finally put Covid behind us, we cannot ignore the risk of new Covid variants in Autumn 2022,” Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary said.
Due to fluctuating energy costs, probable COVID-19 breakouts, geopolitical concerns, and the possibility of supply chain bottlenecks, the airline has little visibility into the second half of Q2 and nearly none into H2. Ryanair anticipates including a financial prognosis in the half-year financial report as a result.
Additionally, Ryanair anticipates an 11% increase in traffic from pre-pandemic levels in FY2023, to 165 million passengers.
