Ryanair Holdings has announced it will reduce its Winter 2023/24 season schedule due to delivery delays affecting its new B737-8-200s. The low-cost carrier now expects to take only 14 aircraft by the end of the year, half of what was originally planned.
"We are working closely with Boeing and their supplier, Spirit [AeroSystems], to minimise these delivery delays. It is deeply regrettable that production problems in Wichita, and in Seattle, have yet again delayed Boeing's contracted deliveries to Ryanair this winter. We are in regular dialogue with Boeing, and our primary objective is to ensure we get delivery of all 57 contracted B737 aircraft before the end of May 2024," Group CEO Michael O'Leary said.
Ryanair was expecting 27 new aircraft in the fourth quarter of 2023 and a further 30 by May 2024. It is now working with the manufacturer to ensure that the fleet reaches its expected size by the peak of the Summer 2024 season.
The carrier will reduce the number of aircraft based out Brussels Charleroi (by three), Dublin International (two), and four of its Italian bases, including Naples Capodichino, Pisa, and Milan Bergamo (by five aircraft in total). Schedule cuts will also impact its Cologne/Bonn, Porto, and Nottingham East Midlands bases.
Ryanair stressed it had no spare aircraft this winter due to necessary maintenance ahead of the busier summer season.
The group has so far taken 124 B737-8-200s, which are distributed between the Ryanair, Buzz (Poland), and Malta Air AOCs. It has a further 86 units of the type on firm order from the manufacturer. The type complements the previous-generation fleet of 392 B737-800s and twenty-eight A320-200s (operated by Lauda Europe). The group also operates a single B737-700 on the Polish AOC for training purposes, as a corporate aircraft, and as a backup for scheduled operations.
