Ryanair currently operates more than 30 routes out of Liverpool John Lennon Airport and says it expects its recovery from the coronavirus crisis will take at least two years. Tony McDonough reports

Ryanair is to cut up to 3,000 jobs and a number of its European bases as it battles with the devastating effects of the coronavirus lockdowns across the continent.

The budget carrier, which currently operates more than 30 routes out of Liverpool John Lennon Airport, says it expects the recovery of demand following the crisis will take at least two years until summer 2020.

And the company has slammed what it calls “state aid doping” whereby Governments are bailing out airlines. So far, European governments have paid out more than €30bn in subsidies to a number of airlines. They include Lufthansa Group, Air France-KLM, Alitalia, SAS, and Norwegian.

Ryanair said: “All this state aid is in breach of EU rules, and will distort Europe’s level playing field in airline competition for many years. Lufthansa, Air France-KLM and Alitalia can now fund many years of below cost selling, whereas Ryanair and other well run airlines will not request (and would not receive) such state aid.

“Ryanair will challenge these unlawful state aid bailouts in the EU Courts to protect fair competition in Europe’s aviation market, which has done so much to lower fares for consumers over the last 20 years.”

The airline said it expects to operate less than 1% of its scheduled flying programme in Apr, May and June 2020 due to lockdowns across Europe. First quarter traffic of less than 150,000 passengers will be 99.5% behind the first quarter budget of 42.4m passengers.

While some return to flight services is expected in the second (July-September) quarter of its financial year, Ryanair expects to carry no more than 50% of its original traffic target of 44.6m in Q2.

For the full year ended March 2021, Ryanair now expects to carry fewer than 100m passengers, more than 35% below its original 154m target. The company says it will shortly notify their trade unions about its restructuring and job loss programme, which will begin from July 2020.

It added: “These plans will be subject to consultation but will affect all Ryanair Airlines, and may result in the loss of up to 3,000 mainly pilot and cabin crew jobs, unpaid leave, and pay cuts of up to 20%, and the closure of a number of aircraft bases across Europe until traffic recovers.

“Job cuts and pay cuts will also be extended to head office and back office teams. Group chief executive Michael O’Leary, whose pay was cut by 50% for April and May, has now agreed to extend this 50% pay cut for the remainder of the financial year to March 2021.

Ryanair is also reviewing its growth plans, and aircraft orders. It is in “active negotiations” with both Boeing, and Laudamotion’s A320 lessors to cut the number of planned aircraft deliveries over the next two years.