Ryanair cuts passenger capacity in response to Covid 'uncertainty'
Embattled Irish airline Ryanair says it will reduce passenger capacity by 20 percent in September and October after a dramatic drop in bookings.
According to the budget airline, the drop in bookings is directly related to “uncertainty” generated by a rise in coronavirus infections in some European Union (EU) countries.
The uncertainty has been compounded by the UK government’s proclivity to impose sudden and in some cases arbitrary quarantine restrictions on people returning from certain European countries, most recently France.
Apart from France, the UK has imposed 14-day quarantines on travelers returning from key traveling points in Europe, including Spain, the Netherlands, Malta, Monaco and Sweden.
Ryanair wound up its operations at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in March but recently increased flights to 60 percent capacity of its normal schedule after resuming services in July.
Justifying the 20 percent capacity reduction, a Ryanair spokesman said: "These capacity cuts and frequency reductions for the months of September and October are unavoidable given the recent weakness in forward bookings due to Covid restrictions in a number of EU countries”.
The latest setback for Ryanair comes on the heels of the airline’s UK cabin crew and pilots agreeing to temporary pay cuts in order to reduce job losses.
Founded in 1984 and headquartered in Dublin (Republic of Ireland), Ryanair maintains a primary operational base at London Stansted airport.
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