Ryanair Declares its Intention to Return with Flights to Ukraine's Boryspil International Airport

On July 20, 2023, the heads of Ryanair, the largest European airline, arrived at Boryspil International Airport with a working visit, i.e. Michael O’Leary, CEO of Ryanair Group, Eddie Wilson, CEO of Ryanair DAC, and Jason McGuinness, Commercial Director of Ryanair DAC.

The visit is being taken place according to agreement with Oleksiy Dubrevskyy, Director General of Boryspil Airport, which was reached within the framework of the negotiations between the head of the Boryspil International Airport and representatives of Ryanair on the sidelines of the important international platforms, and namely the Routes Europe 2023 aviation conference in May 2023 and the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2023 (URC2023), held in London on June 21-22 this year.

As part of a working visit to Ukraine, the management of Ryanair met with a team from the Ministry of Reconstruction, headed by Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration of Ukraine  – Minister for the Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine Oleksandr Kubrakov.

Summarizing the results of the meeting, Oleksandr Kubrakov, Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration of Ukraine – Minister for the Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine noted: “Maintaining the operability of the aviation infrastructure and personnel vocational skills remains vital for us in the conditions of war. Meanwhile, the resumption of flights will be possible as soon as the security situation allows. However, we are already working on solutions and investment plans to enable aircraft to fly up quickly. I am grateful for the leadership in the recovery of our aviation industry, for the specific proposals and decisions of Ryanair, a loyal partner of Ukraine,” said Oleksandr Kubrakov.

By the way, Ryanair is the first international airline whose executives have arrived in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war on February 24, 2022. The program of the visit was started by the management of Ryanair with a visit to the Boryspil Airport, during which, together with CEO of the airport Oleksiy Dubrevskyy, they inspected the condition of the airport terminals, baggage claim and passenger check-in areas, passenger waiting and boarding gate areas, control points, aprons, where they saw with their own eyes the preserved state of the airport infrastructure and its operational readiness to resume flights at any time. Ryanair’s top management highly appreciated the efforts of the employees of Boryspil International Airport to save and maintain the operability of the airport’s infrastructure facilities during the war.

Michael O’Leary, Chief Executive Officer of the Ryanair Group, emphasized that he was inspired by the example of sustainability and dedication of Boryspil Airport employees, who are motivated and comprehensively working for the post-war recovery of air traffic. He emphasized: “Ryanair remains a committed partner in rebuilding and investing in aviation. Today I saw that in the difficult conditions of the war, the Boryspil airport team demonstrates its professionalism and is fully ready for the resumption of flights ASAP. Special attention should be paid to the retention of qualified personnel for such a long time, provided that stable functioning is impossible due to the war. “

Moreover, the visit included a detailed discussion of the partnership between Ryanair and the airport regarding the airline’s stated strategic plan to quickly resume international traffic in the Ukrainian market when Ukraine wins and EASA confirms the safety of flights in the Ukrainian sky.

Oleksiy Dubrevskyy, CEO of Boryspil Airport said: “The visit of Ryanair top management to Boryspil Airport is a powerful signal that the largest airline in Europe sees potential in the Ukrainian air transportation market. We, meanwhile, are ready to move from strategic planning to specific operational actions when the airspace becomes open and safe for civil aviation. I strongly believe that Boryspil Airport will remain the main air gate for the return of our citizens to Ukraine and will continue to play a leading role in the recovery of the Ukrainian economy. “

The airline’s plans also include close cooperation with the Ukrainian government in order to support the recovery of the air transportation market at the level of the entire country, thereby contributing to the reconstruction of industry and the economy. Low-cost Ryanair intends to attract significant funds to Ukraine and lead the recovery of the Ukrainian air transport market by investing about 3 billion dollars and deploying up to 30 new Boeing MAX aircraft in 3 main airports of Ukraine – in Kyiv, Lviv and Odesa. Ryanair plans to open 75 routes from Europe to Ukraine within eight weeks after the airspace is declared safe.