Ryanair CEO sees Poland as Europe's fastest growing airline market

Air travel in Poland is likely to expand rapidly in the coming years and the total number of passengers could triple to 100m by 2022, Ryanair CE Michael O'Leary said. Ryanair was considering entering the Polish charter market, O'Leary said, expanding its low-cost operations. O'Leary also criticised plans to build a new airport in central Poland. Low-cost Ryanair is currently a market leader in European Union member Poland with a roughly 30% share of the market. Its rivals include Polish state airline LOT and Eastern Europe-focused Wizz Air. "I think the Polish market is probably going to be the fastest growing market in Europe if you take the next 5 to 10 years," O'Leary said. Poland's economy has grown by over 40% in the last decade and economists polled by Reuters expect it to expand by 3% this year. "I would be surprised if in 5 years' time annual traffic numbers to and from Polish airports isn't 100m passengers a year," O'Leary said, calling on authorities to speed up approval to extend Modlin.<br/>