Ryanair and Mayo Airport mark 40 years with passenger milestone in sight

Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary touched down at Ireland West Airport Knock this morning to mark 40 years of commercial flights at Ireland West Airport.

The airport is now on course to carry more than one million passengers in 2026 for the first time in its history.

Mr O'Leary arrived wearing Mayo colours for the occasion, which commemorated the first Ryanair service from Knock in December 1986.

In the four decades since, the airline has carried 12 million passengers through the airport and now accounts for approximately 95 per cent of its total traffic.

Ireland West Airport managing director Joe Gilmore welcomed Mr O'Leary to the airport and said the relationship between the two organisations remains strong.

"This summer Ryanair will operate their biggest ever schedule from the airport and we look forward to continuing this strong partnership and to growing our network of routes and services with Ryanair in the future," he said.

The airport has grown passenger numbers by around 40 per cent since pre-Covid levels of 700,000 per year.

It has been among the fastest growing airports in Europe in the period since the pandemic.

This summer, Ryanair will operate 17 routes to and from Knock — eight to UK destinations including London Stansted, London Luton, Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh, East Midlands, Bristol and Birmingham, and nine to European destinations including Malaga, Alicante, Tenerife, Milan, Cologne, Faro, Barcelona, Palma and Lanzarote.

Mr O'Leary drew a pointed comparison with Mayo GAA's long wait for All-Ireland glory.

"Mayo may have been cursed on the football fields for the last 50 years, but thanks to Knock Airport and Ryanair, it continues to be the champion for low-fare air access and tourism growth in the west of Ireland," he said.