{"id":127350,"date":"2026-10-21T11:55:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T10:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/?p=127350"},"modified":"2026-10-21T11:17:19","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T10:17:19","slug":"ryanair-steepest-fare-rise-in-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/ryanair-steepest-fare-rise-in-history\/","title":{"rendered":"Ryanair Warns Passengers To Brace For Steepest Fare Rise In History"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Airfares across Europe could rise by as much as <strong>20% over the next year<\/strong>, according to Ryanair boss Michael O\u2019Leary, as airlines face sharply higher fuel costs. The warning comes as carriers adjust their schedules and reduce flights in response to soaring jet fuel prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Higher Fuel Costs Could Push Up Airfares<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>O\u2019Leary said European airlines would have to pass a substantial part of their higher fuel costs on to passengers. He described the expected increase in fares as potentially the <strong>\u201cbiggest increase in airfares\u201d<\/strong> in European history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He also warned that a 20% increase might not be enough to compensate airlines for the rise in fuel expenses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Jet Fuel Prices Have Surged<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Airlines have been protected to some extent by fuel-hedging agreements, which allow carriers to lock in prices ahead of time. Those protections are now starting to expire, meaning airlines will have to purchase a larger share of their fuel at current market prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to the figures cited by O\u2019Leary, jet fuel prices have risen <strong>113% to $192 a barrel<\/strong> since the beginning of 2026. Ryanair has limited price protection for around <strong>85% of its expected fuel requirements for 2027<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>O\u2019Leary said many other European airlines were in a similar position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Ryanair Cuts Winter Capacity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Ryanair has already reduced its winter schedule in response to higher fuel costs. The airline is expected to carry around <strong>two million fewer passengers<\/strong> during the financial year after cutting approximately <strong>4% of its winter capacity<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The company estimates the reduction could lower its fuel bill by up to <strong>\u20ac100 million<\/strong>. The decision is notable for Ryanair, which has historically pursued passenger growth and additional market share.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">&quot;A ship of fools in the EU Parliament is redesigning regulations that increase the cost of air travel when consumers want lower fares.&quot;<br><br>Ryanair CEO Michael O&#39;Leary, on <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/hashtag\/EuropeToday?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#EuropeToday<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/3WuQAZpFZJ\">pic.twitter.com\/3WuQAZpFZJ<\/a><\/p>&mdash; euronews (@euronews) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/euronews\/status\/2112612491213807845?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 20, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Airlines Are Cutting Thousands Of Flights<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Other European carriers are also reducing the number of flights available. <a href=\"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/easyjet-passengers-face-hand-luggage-change\/\"><strong>EasyJet<\/strong> <\/a>has announced a further <strong>3,500 flight cuts<\/strong>, representing around <strong>700,000 seats<\/strong>, after previously reducing its winter schedule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The airline said the decision reflected fuel prices remaining higher than expected. Reducing capacity can also limit the number of available seats, which can put additional pressure on ticket prices when demand remains strong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">High Fares Could Continue Into 2028<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>O\u2019Leary warned that passengers could face higher fares well beyond the immediate effects of the current fuel price surge. He said that even if the conflict in the Middle East ended immediately, it could take around <strong>a year<\/strong> for kerosene prices to return to normal levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a result, he expects higher airfares to potentially continue into <strong>2028<\/strong>, reports <a href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/business\/2026\/10\/20\/ryanair-boss-predicts-biggest-increase-in-airfares-in-histo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Telegraph<\/a>. The precise size of future fare increases will depend on fuel prices, passenger demand, airline capacity and the extent to which carriers can absorb higher operating costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Aviation Industry Faces Wider Financial Pressure<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The fuel price surge comes at a difficult time for the aviation sector. Industry body <strong>Iata<\/strong> warned in June that higher fuel costs could result in a <strong>$100 billion (\u00a375 billion)<\/strong> financial hit for airlines during the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some carriers have already experienced severe financial difficulties. US budget airline <strong>Spirit Airlines<\/strong> has collapsed, while Latvia&#8217;s <strong>AirBaltic<\/strong> and Spain&#8217;s <strong>Volotea<\/strong> are seeking restructuring under bankruptcy protection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Ryanair Shares Fall After Warning<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Ryanair shares fell by around <strong>2%<\/strong> following O\u2019Leary&#8217;s comments. The stock has declined around <strong>25% this year<\/strong>, putting it on track for its weakest annual performance since 2018.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The share price reflects wider concerns about fuel costs, airline profitability and the prospect of weaker passenger demand if ticket prices rise sharply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Passengers Could Face A More Expensive Year Of Travel<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>European travellers are facing a combination of higher fuel costs, reduced flight schedules and pressure on airline finances. If carriers pass a substantial portion of those costs on to passengers, airfares could rise considerably over the next 12 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>O\u2019Leary&#8217;s <strong>20% warning<\/strong> is a projection rather than a confirmed industry-wide increase, and actual fares will vary between airlines, routes and travel periods.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>European travellers could face a major shake-up in airfares as airlines grapple with soaring fuel costs and reduced flight capacity. Industry warnings point to a tougher period ahead for passengers, with the cost of flying under growing pressure.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":127358,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-127350","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127350","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127350"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127350\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":127359,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127350\/revisions\/127359"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127358"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127350"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127350"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127350"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}