Ryanair Holdings Plc, Europe’s biggest discount airline, said it expects to ground most if not all flights from next week as the coronavirus pandemic prompts people to avoid travel and governments lock down borders.
Starting March 24 the carrier will operate only “a very small number of flights to maintain essential connectivity,” mostly between the U.K. and Ireland, it said Wednesday.
Ryanair had said March 16 it would defer all capital and discretionary spending, halt share buybacks and freeze recruitment to hep preserve cash. It said then that the bulk of capacity would be cut.
Ryanair has a fleet of over 450 Boeing 737 narrow-body jets, as well as 25 Airbus SE A320 planes at its Austria unit.