Ryanair says era of low-cost European air travel is over

Launched in 1984 Ryanair was one of the Euro-zone's first budget carriers transforming travel around the region. Photo / Marty Sakin, Unsplash

Ryanair has said the era of cheap promotional fares is over as the rising cost of flying has forced them to drop previous promotional fare and pricing tactics.

On Wednesday, chief executive Michael O'Leary told the BBC that they expect to increase the average fare by more than a quarter over the next five years.

"There's no doubt that at the lower end of the marketplace, our really cheap promotional fares - the one euro fares, the €0.99 fares, even the €9.99 fares - I think you will not see those fares for the next number of years," O'Leary told BBC radio.

The Irish arbiter of budget travel is seen as Europe's original no-frills carrier. Launched in 1984 the airline sought to bring the US low-cost model to the Eurozone.

Dragging down prices - and, some critics might say, standards - the no-frills approach flourished in the newly-created EU common movement area. Other airlines adopted the model or launched low-cost subsidiaries to compete. Ryanair would be the first to the charge, joined by the likes of Easyjet, Vueling and Wizz Air.

Yet rising fuel prices, labour logistics and climate conscientiousness are conspiring to make getting about Europe more expensive.

The rise and fall of Europe's budget carriers

While demand for air travel has returned this summer, energy costs have continued to rise and airports have struggled to fill shortages in staff.

Complex relationship between airlines, airports and ground handling agencies have resulted in a summer of travel chaos and hand-wringing. O'Leary says it was the "mismanagement" of airports, such as Heathrow, capping arrivals that led to much of the chaos.

Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary says that low-cost promotional fares will not be returning any time soon. Photo / WTTA, Supplied

Even when air travel regains capacity there are signs that the era of low-cost airfares has flown.

Across Europe investment in rail links and emissions laws are seeing more passengers swap short-haul planes for trains. Last year French lawmakers outlawed air links connecting cities where a train journey of less than two-and-a-half hours was available. Some travellers are choosing to take slower more carbon efficient transport options.

However, even in continent that gave us "Flygskam", it is expected that the move to rail or low-emission options will be price led rather than conscience.

O'Leary railed against the notion that air travel was the main culprit for European CO2 emission. He said the focus on air travel was "misplaced", saying road transport and shipping accounted for a bigger share of emissions.

Numbers from the UK Department for Business and Defra state that emissions per passenger are far higher for air travel than any other public transport and have additional harmful byproducts from operating at altitude.