Transavia, Ryanair… will they increase the price of plane tickets?

© Andrey Rudakov / GETTY_IMAGES

Plane crash, door coming apart in mid-flight, fall in stock prices… The storm that Boeing is currently experiencing could well have unexpected repercussions for air passengers. While a general increase in air ticket prices is not to be expected for all European low-cost airlines – Transavia has only a few Boeing aircraft and EasyJet none – Ryanair, whose fleet relies exclusively on Boeing aircraft , could directly suffer the consequences.

The Irish carrier is faced with a real headache: Boeing delivery delays 737 Max disrupts its growth plans. In August, Ryanair’s chief executive, Michael O’Leary, announced that the initial target of carrying 230 million passengers in the current year would not be met, and that the figure was expected to be limited to 200 million, resulting in a loss of 30 million passengers due to delivery delays. This situation creates a dilemma for Europe’s largest airline, which, despite the contractual penalties imposed on Boeing, is seeing its margins reduce.

Ryanair caught in Boeing turmoil?

According to Arnaud Aymé, transport expert at SIA Partners, this situation could actually lead to an increase in ticket prices : «When the fleet does not increase, it changes the balance of supply and demand. Currently, demand is reaching saturation point, particularly due to recent airfare increases. Companies have no interest in continuing to raise their prices at the risk of losing part of their customers, but the absence of an increase in the fleet could cause a further increase in prices, especially if flights become more full.” In other words, a drop in filling capacity would automatically lead to an increase in ticket prices.

In addition, the lack of deliveries compromises the modernization of the fleet. Older devices are expensive to maintain, use more energy and are subject to environmental taxes. These additional costs, combined with the inability to diversify its fleet, make it more difficult for Ryanair to keep prices low. “Low-cost airlines, like Ryanair, cannot afford to have a mixed fleet, unlike major airlines, because this would increase their purchasing and maintenance costs.», underlines Arnaud Aymé. In short, for the queen of low-cost, the more standardized the fleet, the better.

Meanwhile, other players, such as Transavia, seem better equipped to face this crisis. The head of the Air France-KLM group recently decided to reorient Transavia towards a fleet entirely composed of Airbus. “We are engaged in renewing our fleet with Airbus A320neo, so Boeing delays do not concern us“, declared the company. This homogenization should be completed by 2030, and no increase in ticket prices is planned at Transavia.

Thus, the Boeing turmoil could, in the near future, weigh heavily on Ryanair passengers, due to an increase in prices but alsoa loss of traveler confidence with regard to a company which only uses Boeing aircraft. On the other hand, other European companies, having diversified their fleets, should better resist this turbulence.