Ryanair CEO outlines Manchester strategy

Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary warned Manchester's incumbent carriers he plans to "cannibalise" the airport's low-cost market (Manchester Confidential, 13-Jul-2011). The LCC will serve 26 destinations from Manchester, after the airport "recognised they need us", Mr O'Leary claims. The CEO said Manchester was the "opportunity to really go and bury the tour operators", which was behind Ryanair's decision to "pay a little more in Manchester to strike the new deal than we would have originally been prepared to".

Ryanair: "You are going to have very low fares in Manchester. easyJet and Jet2.com are furious, I think they were kind of hoping that Manchester would keep us out and we're really going to stick it to them … Thomas Cook and Tui - we'll be going after a lot of their markets and I think we'll wipe them out," Michael O'Leary, CEO. Source: Manchester Confidential, 13-Jul-2011.