Auch Ryanair kauft in schlechten Zeiten, um in guten zu allem bereit zu sein...
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FT.com - Ryanair in talks to buy 400 aircraft
By Kevin Done
Published: February 2 2009 23:30 | Last updated: February 2 2009 23:30
Ryanair, Europe’s biggest low-cost airline, is in early talks with Boeing and Airbus about an order for 300-400 short-haul jets, one of the biggest ever purchases of new aircraft.
Michael Cawley, deputy chief executive and chief operating officer for Ryanair, said on Monday that he expected the group to place the order within 18-24 months to take advantage of the weakening commercial aerospace market.
The Irish carrier is seeking to repeat its coup of six years ago, when it ordered 100 aircraft and another 50 options in January 2002, close to the bottom of the last aviation recession.
It was the biggest order Boeing had received for its 737 jets. Ryanair secured one of the largest discounts agreed by the US aircraft maker, which was desperate for orders.
Both Boeing and Airbus have said they expect orders to plunge this year to about a quarter of the peak combined industry level of more than 2,800 orders in 2007.
Ryanair has a single type fleet of 181 Boeing 737-800s. That is due to rise to 292 by March 2012 based on existing firm orders. It recently exercised options for 13 more jets for delivery in 2011 and has 10 options remaining.
It is halfway through a plan to double its fleet and passenger numbers between 2007 and 2012. Passenger volumes are scheduled to grow from 43m in the year to March 2007 to 87m in the year to March 2012, when Ryanair will have become the biggest short-haul carrier in Europe.
The potential order will trigger a fierce contest between Boeing and Airbus. Mr Cawley said that, given the airline’s size, the group would be happy to move to a mixed Airbus/Boeing fleet.
In the last downturn EasyJet wrung big price concessions out of Airbus to switch from an all-Boeing fleet. The strategies of Ryanair and EasyJet are diverging sharply, however.
EasyJet, the leading UK low-cost airline, is seeking to slow its growth and has clauses in its Airbus contract to defer half its deliveries up to two years.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2009
