The chief financial officer of one of Europe’s most prolific low-cost airlines says the company has come up with a plan for a potential ‘armageddon situation’ triggered by high jet fuel prices as the Iran war drags on.
Neil Sorahan, CFO of RyanAir, said persistently high jet fuel prices may cause some airlines that were already struggling before the war to be hit even harder or potentially go out of business come winter. As for RyanAir, the company is prepared for even the worst possible situation if the conflict between the U.S. and Iran escalates.
“Do we have plans for some kind of Armageddon situation? Of course, we do, but I don’t see that coming to pass. As things stand, we’re operating a full schedule this summer, and plan to operate a full schedule into the winter period,” Sorahan told CNBC.
Sorahan, in an interview with CNBC Monday, said despite the fuel crisis, RyanAir may be insulated from the worst of the effects of spiking oil prices because it has hedged 80% of its summer fuel at an even lower price than it paid for fuel last year. And as a result, he doesn’t foresee any cancellations this summer or any sort of fuel surcharge added to fares, even though price increases may not be out of the question.
