A fine by Italian competition authorities dented profits at airline Ryanair Holdings in the three months to December 31st, figures show.
Revenue at the Irish airline increased 8.5 per cent to €3.21 billion during the quarter from €2.96 billion in the same period in 2024, while passenger numbers rose 6 per cent to 47.5 million.
The airline said its places were filled, on average, to 92 per cent of capacity during the quarter, in line with the previous year, with its average fare rising over 2 per cent to €44.
Profit fell 80 per cent to €30 million from €149 million, after allowing for a €256 million fine by Italy’s competition regulator, which Ryanair believes will be overturned on appeal.
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Excluding that once-off charge, the airline reported profit after tax of €115 million, 22 per cent less than during the comparable quarter in 2024.
Ryanair included around one-third of the total fine as an exceptional charge for the three-month period, the third quarter of its financial year, which ends in March 31st.
Chief executive, Michael O’Leary, said the airline was appealing the fine and noted that the company and its Italian legal advisers were confident this would succeed.
The fine stems from Ryanair’s efforts to prevent online travel agents selling its flights without authorisation. The airline dubbed it “bizarre” when the Italian authorities imposed the penalty in December.
It also argued that the authority was acting contrary to an Italian court ruling that Ryanair’s direct distribution system benefited passengers.
Ryanair is “cautiously” predicting that its full-year profit will fall “between €2.13 billion and €2.23 billion”, before the impact of any exceptional charges, according to Mr O’Leary.
The airline also said the comparison with the third quarter of last year was impacted by compensation paid in 2024 by aircraft manufacturer Boeing for the late arrival of new jets.
The US company has now delivered almost all the 737-8200 aircraft that Ryanair has ordered. Ryanair has 206 of those aircraft in its 643-strong fleet and will receive the last four due by the end of February.
