Ryanair 'couldn't care less' about another Boeing order as it lifts growth target

Ryanair lifted its five-year passenger forecast on Thursday, saying the delivery of an existing Boeing order and increased use of older aircraft would allow it to grow faster without the need for an additional large plane deal. Europe’s largest low cost carrier last week abruptly ended talks with the planemaker over a new order of the larger 737 MAX 10 jets, worth tens of billions of dollars, due to differences over price. Shares of the airline jumped 7% on Thursday after it raised its passenger growth forecast. “If we don’t do another order until 2025, frankly we couldn’t care less. The one great thing about the airline industry is we know there’s going to be another crisis in five years’ time (to drive down jet prices),” CE Michael O’Leary told an analyst call after Ryanair’s annual general meeting. The airline, one of Boeing’s biggest customers, will keep talking to the planemaker, O’Leary said, adding that relations between the two remain “very good”. However, O’Leary has said he is willing to wait years for Boeing to drop its prices and on Thursday he said Ryanair had enough aircraft to fly 225m passengers a year by 2026, up from 200m previously forecast. O’Leary told Reuters that to meet that target Ryanair would sell fewer second-hand planes, on top of the planned delivery of 210 of Boeing’s 197-seat MAX 200 model over the next five years. It may also buy or lease a small amount of current generation planes, he added.<br/>