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Ryanair, Aer Lingus: Irish price war

Friday, February 05, 2010

Source: Catherine Deshayes

Air passengers in Ireland could benefit from lower fares following Ryanair's announcement that it will directly compete with Aer Lingus on several of its popular sun destinations...

Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary has confirmed that the low-cost airline will launch seven new routes from Cork Airport - all of which are currently served by the Irish flag carrier.

The move comes despite an attempt by Aer Lingus to downplay suggestions of a price war, rebranding itself last week as a "civilised" airline whose customers care about more than price.

Mr O'Leary said the new routes - which focus on Portuguese and Spanish destinations popular with sun-seekers - will be available during the peak summer period only.

"We will operate them for three months - June, July and August," he told The Irish Independent. "If they go, I'd say they could come back in 2011. If we can carry a lot of people from Cork to the sun in three months of the summer at a fraction of the fares charged by Aer Lingus, let's do it."

The Ryanair boss added: "It serves two agendas. One, it gives us more growth at Cork Airport. And two, it causes significant damage to our weaker and smaller competitors."

He also predicted that Ryanair would undercut Aer Lingus' fares by up to 48 per cent on some routes, though the Irish flag carrier was quick to announce its own plans for expansion.

Aer Lingus spokesman Stephen Kavanagh said the airline will operate 140 weekly departures from Cork Airport during the summer - its largest offering ever - which will include new flights to Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Jersey, La Rochelle, London Gatwick and Tenerife.

Ryanair's new routes from Cork Airport will be Alicante, Barcelona Reus, Bordeaux, Faro, La Rochelle, Lanzarote and Malaga, with one-way fares starting from £39.99.

Source: www.cheapflights.co.uk