We have options on A380s ... but we are not going to exercise them because they are too expensive, we see the option of leasing them second hand as an attractive opportunity.

Willie Walsh

Categorized in : Company News

We are pleased we haven't got one on order. It's too big an aircr... by Willie Walsh

We are pleased we haven't got one on order. It's too big an aircraft.

aviation bigs order

We intend to take all appropriate steps to defend the airline's position vigorously, including making any necessary appeals.

Given the scale of our operations, I see no reason why we should be confined to Airbus, that is not healthy. There [ should be ] competition between aircraft manufacturers.

We have every confidence in Boeing and expect that the aircraft will make a successful return to service in the coming months having received approval from the regulators.

The day you see me back flying is the day you know there's a pilo... by Willie Walsh

The day you see me back flying is the day you know there's a pilot shortage.

This whole debate should encourage more, if you look at the board it is predominantly middle-aged white men from Europe. We have more diversity on the board now than we have had for a long time, and we have to strive to improve that situation.

Aer Lingus recruited its first female pilot in 1977... It's taken... by Willie Walsh

Aer Lingus recruited its first female pilot in 1977... It's taken 40 years to get to 10 percent.

We take a simple view that hedging is about buying time; it gives... by Willie Walsh

We take a simple view that hedging is about buying time; it gives you time to address volatility.

(Ryanair CEO) Michael O'Leary portrays this as people in the UK won't be able to fly. But it's people in Europe that won't be able to fly.

Our expectation was, had it been a vote to remain we would have seen demand from corporates bounce back. But ultimately, people will understand what it means and then the world will get on again, so it's short term.

If there is expensive, inefficient airport expansion at Gatwick or Heathrow, then we will expand through other airports and hubs.

In our view, any new runway development should be phased in to keep costs down. There is no need to build all the facilities at once.

We compete with the likes of Ryanair, the most aggressive low-cost airline in Europe. We've got to have a cost base that enables us to compete in an effective manner.

We see going forward probably a greater mix of leased in the flee... by Willie Walsh

We see going forward probably a greater mix of leased in the fleet than we've traditionally had.

There's no time frame, it will depend on when aircraft become available, we're not in an immediate hurry.

We believe that there is evidence to suggest that the competition between OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) is not as strong as it should be and that there are restrictive practices.

The industry has a clear preference for a global emissions trading scheme, but I think some of the suggestions that are being introduced are interesting and should be examined, we've moved on significantly from where we were a couple of years ago when there were separate states and they would not participate and we've also moved on from where people felt ICAO would be unable to reach an agreement.