Ryanair warns of increased fares this Christmas

Michael Bolton

Passengers are facing increased prices on flights this Christmas, according to Ryanair.

The Dublin-based carrier also warned that airlines will cut the number of seats at Dublin Airport by 1 million next summer, if there is no change to the airport's passenger cap.

Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary claimed tourism and jobs were being damaged by the 32 million passenger cap, introduced in Dublin in 2007.

He said it was also driving ticket prices up for consumers.

"We are looking at €500 one-way fares this Christmas," he told Newstalk radio. "Normally at Christmas, we operate over the 10 days at Christmas at about 500,000 seats in and out of Dublin.

"Normally we increase that by about 50 per cent, we run about 750,000 seats."

He said Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan must get involved with the situation.

"There were concerns in 2007 that if Dublin Airport got past two million passengers, road traffic access to Dublin Airport would collapse.

"Dublin Airport is fine. All we need now is a confident public transport minister to intervene and say this condition no longer applies, I am instructing the IAA to ignore this cap while the DAA are applying to Fingal County Council to lift the cap."