Fuel costs mean no more €10 flights says Ryanair boss

Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary says the era of the €10 air fare is over.

He says the average Ryanair fare will go from €40 to €50 over the next five years.

The Gigginstown man believes however that people will continue to fly frequently.

"There's no doubt that at the lower end of the marketplace, our really cheap promotional fares - the one euro fares, the €0.99 fares, even the €9.99 fares - I think you will not see those fares for the next number of years," Mr O'Leary told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"We think people will continue to fly frequently. But I think people are going to become much more price sensitive and therefore my view of life is that people will trade down in their many millions."

The airline sector has come under pressure to reduce its impact on the climate, as commercial flights are believed to account for about 2.4% of global CO2 emissions.

However, Mr O'Leary argued road transport and shipping were bigger contributors of CO2 overall, and said the focus on reducing emissions from air travel was "misplaced".

He said Ryanair was investing in more fuel efficient aircraft, but that greater reductions in fossil fuel use would come from the switch from petrol and diesel to electric road vehicles.