Irski nizkocenovni letalski prevoznik Ryanair je na Twitterju objavil, da ne pričakujejo, da bodo lete lahko opravljali v aprilu in maju 2020. Seveda pa bo odločitev glede prizemljitve odvisna tudi od odločitev držav v EU glede odprtosti – zaprtosti letališč.
Ryanair predvidoma ne bo letel do junija 2020
Michael O’Leary, izvršni direktor Ryanair Group je v zapisal, da je koronavirus COVID-19 spremenil življenja ljudi v Evropi in po svetu in da so zaradi nepredstavljivih omejitev s strani držav glede potovanj in poletov bili primorani ustaviti svoje lete. In nadaljeval:
As a Group of Airlines, we expect most of our flights to be grounded from Tues 24th March onwards. We have offered our aircraft to all EU Governments, both for rescue flights and to operate essential flights for the movement of vital medicines, personal protective equipment, and if necessary, emergency food supplies. As Europe’s borders become congested or closed, it’s vital Ryanair plays its part to keep vital medicines and food supplies moving. We are continuing to work with EU Governments on rescue flights to return stranded passengers to their home country. In all cases, these flights take place under maximum safety, with daily disinfecting of aircraft, and no trolley service to minimize social contact. The safety and well-being of our crews and passengers is our no.1 priority.
Letala bodo uporabljena za repatriacijo
Čeprav Ryanair ne bo opravljal rednih potniških poletov, so svoja letala, v floti imajo več kot 300 letal, ponudili Irski in vsem državam v EU za repatriacijo svojih državljanov. Prav tako svoja letala dajejo na razpolago državam za prevoz medicinskega materiala. Že prejšnji teden pa so pri Ryanairu za Financial Times povedali, da si bo osebje v mesecih april in maj za 50% zmanjšalo plače. O’Leary pa ni izključil niti odpuščanj. Vseeno pa je v današnji izjavi dodal:
In Ryanair, Buzz, Lauda and Air Malta, we will do everything we can to keep our aircraft, our crews and our engineering teams operational so that when Europe defeats this Covid-19 pandemic, we are ready to return to flying.