Ryanair seeks to double traffic in Baltic region after airBaltic bankruptcy

By Padraic Halpin

DUBLIN, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Ryanair said on Thursday it plans to double passenger numbers in the Baltic region over the next five years, seeking to capitalise on airBaltic's retrenchment and bankruptcy protection filing.

The plans by Europe's largest airline by passenger numbers come days after the Latvian carrier became the first European airline to file for bankruptcy as a result of fallout from the Iran conflict.

Ryanair said it aims to provide 11 million annual seats across Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania by 2031 and base 16 aircraft in the region, up from seven currently. 

"This proposal is even more important following airBaltic's announcement that it will shrink its fleet by one-third," Ryanair Chief Commercial Officer Jason McGuinness said in a statement.

AirBaltic said in August it planned to reduce its fleet to 36 aircraft by the end of 2026 from 54, with a target of about 40 aircraft by 2031, down from a previous goal of 100.

"Competition is good for airlines and ultimately good for passengers. At airBaltic, however, we believe connectivity is measured by what you deliver, not by what you promise," the Latvian company told Reuters in a statement on Thursday.

BIGGER PLAYERS SWOOP ON ROUTES

Airline executives and investors have said the cost crisis triggered by the U.S.-Iran war could force smaller national carriers to surrender routes to larger, better-capitalised rivals, including low-cost operators such as Ryanair.

Ryanair's planned expansion forms part of its broader strategy to increase annual passenger traffic to 300 million by 2034 from 208 million in the year to end-March 2026, as it takes delivery of 300 Boeing 737 MAX 10 aircraft from 2027.     

The Irish airline said that in the near term it would add winter flights on 10 Riga routes to locations including Milan, Alicante and Barcelona after a reduction in airport charges.

However, it will cut winter capacity by 25% in Lithuania and Estonia following increases in airport charges there and redeploy that capacity to "more competitive countries" such as Slovakia, Poland, Italy, and Sweden.

(Reporting by Padraic Halpin in Dublin, Yamini Kalia in Bengaluru and Gianluca Lo Nostro in Gdansk. Editing by Vijay Kishore and Mark Potter)